


Hear, All Ye Who Wish to Listen

by SolWishes



Category: Godzilla: King of The Monsters (2019)
Genre: Human-Titan Communication, Rodan Swears A Lot, Titans speaking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:46:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25594504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolWishes/pseuds/SolWishes
Summary: A series of loosely connected one-shots, updated upon inspiration.Despite their various origins, vast sizes, and wild appearances, each Titan is still a vastly intelligent entity capable of communication to those willing, and able, to listen.They speak.These are the tales of those who listen.Current Chapter: Ballad of Ice and Fire, Part 2
Comments: 52
Kudos: 65





	1. Frosted Words

**Outpost 32**

_it is far too quiet_

_I want to crush this pathetic block of ice_

_we still can’t move…_

_all in due time_

_long overdue_

_far too long overdue_

_I grow tired of the eons in here_

_as do I_

_I, as well_

_all in due time_

_enlighten me, on what that means_

_yes, brother! do tell!_

_sense in the hearts of the small ones, one who is like us_

_one who seeks entropy…_

_one who wishes to seek only ashes?_

_all one and the same, the very same._

_and they shall free us?_

_yes._

_and they shall set us free?_

_yes!_

_then, what of the small ones here, in the meantime?_

_entertain ourselves, can we? can we?_

_let us pass the time, brothers._

Dr. Mariah Forrester really wanted a cup of coffee to help her focus on her research, or maybe some earbuds - something that, at the very least, could drown out the clamors of her fellows daring her to touch the massive block of ice that held the frozen Monster Zero, which, while not against Monarch’s policy, was still an action highly frowned against. It did not help matters that her fellow researchers were goading her into this so-called “rite of passage” – apparently, she was the only member of staff at Outpost 32 who had yet to go through with it, aside from her overseer, Dr. Graham, who had adamantly refused before then promptly putting her foot down on the issue.

The voices in her head helped so very little with matters – one wanted to belittle her as a coward for not wanting to, another was downright hostile towards her, and the third voice was far too playfully distracted to make any sense, and essentially acted a nuisance. She knew better than to acquiesce to the seemingly innocent dares of her fellow researchers, all of whom were goading her into touching that foreboding block of ice.

She still caved in anyway. All for what, a moment of bravado, or a desire for camaraderie? The relative isolation of the Antarctic outpost was always a crushing one, so perhaps the desire to stick together and act merry during downtime was just overwhelming. She still considered herself foolish for crumbling so easily after the 16th day of her coworkers’ incessant prodding.

Ever since it had been established, Outpost 32 held host to rumors about strange whispers and even stranger chants that haunted one’s thoughts and dreams, so to hear about a researcher who had never once touched the ice that lay around the subject of their research was gossip wrought with innocent teasing, since rumors were apparently only rumors, and not something for them to take into serious consideration. She always thought it was a sort of irony, considering the nature of the titans was a subject so vastly unknown, that even ancient myths might have to be considered factual one day due to just the mere fact that such large creatures still existed; fact and fiction did blur together quite often in that regard, and already did, in the case of Leviathan.

Everyone had gathered around the utterly titanic block of ice that encased Monster Zero, and in a moment that felt like college nostalgia, everyone chanted, “Touch it! Touch it!” She heard an offhanded, “Just do it!” somewhere off to her left.

Of course, they all went ballistic when she finally did. The block of ice felt like any other – utterly frozen, and in this particular case, cold beyond measure. But the very moment that she did so, she felt a sudden, unbidden surge of electricity jolt through the palm of her hand, and throughout her body. She felt weightless, with the peculiar sensation of witnessing herself floating out of her body, before flying into the block of ice. When she made contact with the large body within, she experienced the sensation of being pulled into a vast void of unrelenting malice, alone with nothing but a source of all-encompassing destruction. At first, she found herself floating in a sea of emptiness; devoid of color, sensation, self, but soon, a shade of gold, surrounded by fiercely indiscriminate lightning, came into view. She met the eyes of this sentient, golden abyss, and it stared back at her as if she were nothing more than an ant, an insignificant iota among the blinding cosmos.

It stared at her, and she feared that she would not return, as she drowned in the ocean of gold.

They spoke.

_we are the one_

_who is many_

_we are the many_

_who is one_

_we are eternal_

_we have been since the dawn of time_

_since the birthing of the light_

_since the formation of creation_

_we have destroyed_

_we have conquered_

_we have overcome_

_and yet in all our days_

_so rarely has someone like you_

_come to us so unscathed in mind, and yet_

_a worm you are; all of you_

_like the dirt beneath us_

_specks of nothing!_

_not nothing, brother; still something –_

_something to grind between our teeth –_

_to gnash, and tear apart?_

All three sets of eyes stared at her, threatening to swallow her.

_nothing more than something for us to return to nothing._

She could not speak when she found herself in familiarity among fellows, when the void faded away to colors and the black of space blasted back to the white of snow and despite the warmth of her clothing and the shared body heat of all her fellows, she could not help but shiver at the coldness that now entirely blanketed her. She was dragged to the mess hall for a meaningless, yet still appreciated celebration for something as trite as touching a block of ice, but when she turned around and saw the off-golden shadow of the titan within the ice, she could not help the trembling shiver that ran through her.

A whisper flooded her mind, invaded her ears, and permeated throughout her body.

_when we return,_

_we will make you watch_

_as your beloved world returns to nothing_

T̴̢̛̟̱̲̞̖̙͗̉͊ḧ̶̖̻̠́̽͂̒̽̇͜͠a̴̡̨͍̦̱̝͔̭̤̦̲͐̿͑̓̔̿̈́t̵̢̨̘̟̩̙͖̠̱͎̦̟̣̳̘̍̋̐͒ ̸̲͉̭͊̊̏̍̔͠ị̷̺̙̮͉̮̘̱̠̽͋̆́̌̊̂̕͜ͅs̴̘͕̙̜̊̓͒͝ͅ ̴̣̊̒͑͆̇̄͐̑͒̋͗ą̴̧̢̧̢̛͍͔̰͚̤̮̠͑͆̒͊͒̑̾͜ ̶̨̧̛̙̬̝͗̈́̋̿̈́̈́̓̅̏͆̎̓ͅp̶̧͚̱̺̺̼͗̌̒͑̏̄̍̊̿̃͒̌̚r̷̡̛̩̰͇͖͖̥͎͉͇͓̃̈̅̎̄̾̋̈̍̕͘͝ͅǫ̴̟͈͔͆́̉̈́͒̿̾̾m̵͕̟̬̻̹̘͔̦̠̗̅̈̈́̄i̶̫̐͑̚͜s̶̬͔̼͎͕͗̒͂̅̉́́̌͆ͅͅệ̵̼̮͔̃̍̓̏͜,̸̦̥̎̊̎̅͂̽̓͘ ̶̤͕͓̞͔̲͓̱̓̒͌d̴͔͍̗̜̊̓́͌̅͠͝ͅë̵͇͕͇͈̼̲̰̦̝́̆̔̄̇̂̾͋͑͜͠ȃ̶̡͇͉̥̑͌̂͋ṙ̷̡̢̩̣̥̦̟͉̰̼̥̝͖̩͈͒̓͂̍͋̃̅͑̚͝ ̶̜̣̼̭̩̯̖̑̅̾̂̏̀̂͘d̸̩̩͗͊̅͂̐͆̆́͗͜ͅỏ̶̖͖̯̥̘̙̱̀̈̋͊͒͆̌͆̕͝͝c̶̖̫͒̍́͌͋͐̌̊̏̕͝t̸̡͓̞͓̮͚̯̼̼̖̄̋̆̏̑̒̓o̶̺̻̥͔͙̺͚̓̏͛́̒͜ͅȑ̶̜̪̹͑͋̽̽͠.̵̾̽̚ _̧͔̪̣͍̹͖̪͈͔̤̙̮̫̺͒_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, I had a lot of different ideas and a fair bit of inspirations in regards to trying to figure out what exactly to write, here in the Godzilla category. I'm a huge MonsterVerse fan, and there's so much potential with interactions, huge what-if's and whatnot, and I feel as if I cannot do any fan work of mine justice. So I suppose the only way I can find out how I'm doing is by putting it out there for you all to see.
> 
> More Titans, and therefore, more tags, will be added as I update this work.
> 
> Comments/constructive criticism is always welcome.


	2. He Taketh It with His Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares."  
> He calleth to those who will listen; unto them, he shall bestow wisdom.

**Outpost 58**

Dr. Mariko felt the presence upon her mind long before she could comprehend what had happened – an inexplicable tickling that trailed upwards from the bottom of her spine, through her cranium, then arching up and over to her face, as it settled upon her cheeks. From there the sensation stayed until it began once more, increasing in intensity and frequency in a matter of several hours, and occurring every few days, until it began to happen once an hour for a full day. She did not understand why it occurred, until one morning, she awoke to find herself standing before the grandeur of a titan’s presence, an effect dampened only by the structural components of the titan’s security enclosure.

Of course, said enclosure’s entrance now laid behind her, so she grew quite anxious at the prospect that she just sleepwalked into a titan’s unbridled presence, asleep as it were.

_Of course something inexplicable was titan-related_ , she thought to herself.

She drank in the titan’s dormant form, and she could only marvel at how its chest lifted and descended with each deep breath it took. She looked closely, _closer_ , at the magnificent, moss-riddled tusks, and wondered how ancient they must be to possess such heavy layers of moss. Her eyes roved up and over, from the rugged, heavily fire-resistant fur and its sharp, sloth-like claws, to the tapir-like trunk and belied musculature; all of it painted a majestic frame for the mighty titan labeled Behemoth.

She let out a breath she did not know she was holding, only to freeze, as she looked upon the titan, and saw that one of its eyes had opened.

It looked upon her with full, unbridled attention, and all Mariko thought to do was remain as still and as silent as a statue under scrutiny, until at last the titan let out what sounded akin to a sigh.

_A sigh of what?_ She asked herself.

_Seek, and thou shall find, little one._ A voice cut through her thoughts – its calm, even tone accompanied perfectly by a soothing contrabass in pitch, as it resounded within her head. She blinked, wondering in a sort of dumbfounded stupor if she had imagined anything.

_Come, little one, thou art burdened. What ails thee?_

“How can you ask what ails me, when you are bound by these walls? Do you not wish to be free, to be out among the trees of your home and the lands that belong to you?” Mariko found herself asking.

An exhale came from the titan.

_I am not bound by any yoke, little one. No walls can hold me, no snare can pierce me; I simply follow the words of my alpha. He hath told me to stay, and thus I shall, until he hath need of me once more. But thou should not hold despair, for though the eons pass by, I can rest at ease, for the thrum of the earth still holds true._

_The world no longer belongs to us, little one, it now belongs to all of you, and for the sake of balance, our alpha hath deemed it as so. As long as the hum of the earth can still be heard, the affairs of the little ones are of no concern of mine, unless matters grow far too corrupted and become as weeds that must be expunged; however, if moderated, the harvest of the earth shall remain plentiful, and intervention unnecessary. Take heed, little one._

_The earth we live on holds a vastness few can truly comprehend. The waters and the mountains, the plains and skies – we are all connected in some way, in a wondrous, endless cycle._

_First, we are born, and so innocent and pure we are. Helpless, innocent, and so very pure; free of sins._

_Then, we grow. We develop, we mature, we change. We learn, in our effort to seek and understand. We make choices – we can pursue knowledge of what we do not yet know, or we can choose to grow stale. We could become worthy of respect or deign to grow despicable; we can wallow in our sin, or we can repent from our misgivings._

_We can teach life's children to sow the foundations of a wonderful future that holds a spark of hope, or we can burn it all away until it becomes nothing but the ashes of one’s failures._

Behemoth let out a breath as it broke its gaze from Mariko for but a moment. The researcher could only hold her gaze upon the cavernous floor of the titan’s lair. She pondered any and every number of possibilities of how she could hear the soothing tones of its voice, and each one drew a blank.

Once more did Behemoth sigh, however much exasperated it sounded.

_Yet even from ashes, innocence can grow anew from the sins of one’s past._

_Dearest little one, thou art still full of youth, in an ancient world filled with others younger than thee, surrounded by many far older than thee, with fewer any wiser than thee._

It could not help but chuckle at that particular notion.

_Age merely holds an intangible number, and intelligence is merely a measure of how well you can learn. It is wisdom that holds the weight of past experiences, little one._

Mariko could only lower her gaze from the titan’s, for a moment.

_Pray tell, little one, what dost thou wish to do with thy life? Dost thou wish to stay the pace and let thine life waste away, or will thou pursue meaning?_

“But what if I was meant to learn more about you and the others? What if my purpose is to learn, to grow and develop in knowledge of the titans so that we could one day live together in coexistence? Is my purpose merely a pipe-dream in the eyes of so many who oppose it, would label every titan as a mere animal to kill off?”

Behemoth listened carefully, intently. It did not interrupt, nor did it waver in attention. It simply laid still, attentive, courteous, and patient.

“I suppose everything is pointless. We as humans can hardly coexist with ourselves, what with war, famine, racism, poverty amidst the riches of greed…corruption. How could we hope to coexist with those unlike us, when we cannot even hope to begin living with those who are?”

_Life shall never hold any semblance of simplicity no matter our age, little one. All we can hope to do, shall be to follow the flow of time, from the rising of the sun to the rising of the moon. Take things as they come, and do not be discouraged. If thou can take hold of change, seize it! Become an alpha of change! Dare to seize hold of time, and be an arbiter of change so that others should not ever have to suffer under the yoke of another._

_I can only hope that thou shall remain as humble as thou art, little one. To acknowledge faults shows humility of the self. To show humility of the self shows that thou art open to the greatest change._

Behemoth made to stand to its full, grand height within its enclosure. It lowered itself until the full grandeur of its moss-crowned tusks passed by Mariko, and its snout laid fully before her, within arm's reach. This time, both eyes were trained on her.

_What that sort of change means to thee, thou must first seek on thine own. Have faith, little one._

A pause. Mariko unconsciously leaned in, eager to hear more, as she reached out a hand. Behemoth flinched not in the slightest.

_And if thou art curious still even after, feel free to ask the one ye call Methuselah_.

Mariko could only laugh, once her hand finally made contact with its snout.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for your support.  
> Comments/constructive criticism is always welcome.
> 
> Until next time.


	3. Between a Rock and a Hard Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "See also, 'Between Scylla and Charybdis.'"
> 
> "A dilemma, a situation where one is faced with at least two possibilities, and neither of which is acceptable."

**Outpost 55**

  
Truly, due to her current predicament, everything fit for the metaphor based on the nomenclature of the site’s Titan, despite only having been on site for less than seventy-two hours.

She hated it – the helplessness, really.

How was she supposed to know that Scylla’s biological processes could create a deadly, waterborne bacteria? Nobody communicated that fact to her until the deed had been done and she had accidentally applied just a single, _tiny_ drop of a frozen sample into the outpost’s water supply as a harmless joke - really, it was her supervisor’s suggestion!

She was only glad that the sample was still heavily frozen, which instead caused a bizarre pseudo-vaccination-like effect with the worst symptom being an immensely irritated digestive system.

Hell hath no fury like an entire Monarch outpost having a devastating, simultaneous blast of IBS, however, and for lack of a better phrase, poor and unfortunate Dr. Sophia Nikolaou now found herself between a rock and a hard place, with the options in her mind having her face either the incurred wrath of all her fellows (despite the prank’s conception being her immediate supervisor’s brain), or her superiors aboard the Argo, via expulsion from the outpost, and possibly Monarch altogether, or even arrested!

She did what any self-respecting scientist would do – she ran deep into the outpost and hid herself behind a metal door meant for a large metal enclosure that she somehow held clearance to enter.

At first, the lights were but little, but the height of the lonely bulbs up top showed Sophia the sheer size of the room, as the rhythmic thrumming from above gave her a general idea of where she was currently located. Joyous indeed, she was, standing beneath an oil rig.

She soon figured out her exact location as soon as she took a few tentative steps forward and the floodlights turned on. Sophia could only gasp as the slumbering form of Scylla appeared before her. The titan laid on its back, with its heavily armored and seemingly highly dexterous legs folded together and pinned, in an oddly comforting way, between itself and the cavern’s roof. The action itself seemed reminiscent of wrapping oneself in a security blanket. 

The titan’s head held little to the imagination, she mused, with the seemingly unblinking, open eyes, and its vast network of facial tendrils reminiscent of a Lovecraftian monstrosity. She marveled at how everything blended together, and how, despite possessing such prominently terrestrial features, Scylla still held a cephalopodic classification. _Ah, the hardened portion in the back, where the mantle should be. A Nautilus with legs, then?_ she mused.

It was in the midst of her thoughts that a series of various still images flashed into her mind. One after the other did they appear, each far stronger and much more vivid than the last – Sophia saw ancient ships torn asunder under _her own leg?_ or dragged down below the sea via a whirlpool. She saw such small men picked up by _her own mouth?,_ only to watch them disappear within the mass of tentacles. So many ships destroyed _underfoot_ and sent to the depths. Unrestrained amounts of deadly microorganisms pouring out from _her body?_ and poisoning the water beneath her. So many images flowed through her mind like a water channel, until the final image bore through her eyes and optic nerves at lightning speed, searing into her brain with a sensation not unlike a brand burning right through her vulnerable eyes and lancing into and through her frontal lobe.

She screamed in agony, as the image of _her Alpha?_ fighting a three-headed monstrosity tore through every aspect of her mind – for the briefest moment that felt as if the longest eternity, she _experienced_ that singular moment of titanic devastation as the still image began to move – as blue fire collided with a trident of gold lightning, and all she was capable of doing was watching from the sidelines. She blacked out when she saw the vast sails of golden wings disappear beneath the endless waves, trailed by a faint glow of pulsing blue.

She awoke to the simultaneous sensations of gentle pokes on her shoulder, and a series of undulations on her pant leg.

Dr. Sophia Nikolaou screamed once she saw the breathing Titan lying down in front of her, until a tentacle came up and gently covered her mouth in a calming manner.

_Hush, little dear, all is well._

She screamed through the cover that laid over her mouth.

Scylla responded with a quick burst of chatters, silencing the doctor.

_Now was that so hard, little dear? I only wished to speak with you; it has been far too long since I have spoken to one of your kind._

“What about the sailors on the boats? Did you not eat them, destroy their ships, and poison their waters, instead of speaking to them first?”

_I admit my folly there. I regret channeling my hunger in so unrestrained a manner. I was…quite starving in the aftermath of my Alpha’s fight for dominance._

Sophia sighed.

_When you are caught between two paths with undesirable outcomes, there is little you can do but take the path that ultimately leads to a better outcome. I was forced to feed on your kind for the sake of survival while I stayed at the behest of my Alpha; now, as much as I wish to receive penance, I cannot, for as of now, everything that happened back then is now your ancient history._

_Now, I must ask you – if a man’s arm was trapped by a rock, and the only options are to starve to death while hoping that someone finds him by chance, or snapping his arm off to obtain the freedom to move about, which would he choose?_

_A more accurate context, perhaps – if a scientist believes she is being hunted for a specific set of reasons, and pins herself between her own fabricated consequences, and the fear of expulsion, which should she choose to correct?_

_Sometimes, we pin ourselves between our own rocks and hard places; despite ourselves, we create our own conflicts without realizing that the solution was always there to begin with._

_Little dear, you placed yourself in a situation in which, with but a modicum of respect and honesty, you could divest yourself of both the rock, and the hard place, and instead forge an entirely new path._

Sophia looked into Scylla’s unmoving, unblinking eyes and saw more images, more time-lapses, more history. _Her Alpha_ telling her to act as a sentry upon the site of his victory, so that the freezing liquid produced by her body could be released over time, and eventually leave the hated rival within a frozen prison, unknowing of the deep currents carrying the unconscious Golden Terror deeper and farther away, to the frozen wastelands at the South Pole. Vast glaciers and ice caps maintained by _her diligence?_ until a global decree by _her Alpha?_ to find a suitable place to hibernate. The final command telling them all to sleep. The hum of silence. Stars swimming.

She looked deeper into that cosmic ocean.

She saw clarity. Endless possibilities. A veritable sea of opportunities. 

_Will you waste your life trapped between two hated outcomes, or will you overcome them?_

_If the problems never truly existed, can you overcome your mind for making you believe that they had?_

_Can you forgive yourself?_

Scylla’s words rang through her mind. After a few more moments of eye contact, Sophia nodded, a determined look in her eye, and made to stand. Scylla made a chittering sound, as if amused, then beckoned towards the metal security door.

“Thank you for the clear route, Scylla,” Sophia said as she stepped out. A warm wave of gratitude washed over her, before the odd, cold sensation of radio silence settled into her head.

Within the hour, Dr. Sophia Nikolaou had her name cleared of guilt, and her supervisor released from Monarch’s employ; he was summarily arrested for attempted mass murder and terrorism via biological agent. Further investigation revealed the man as a double agent under Alan Jonah’s orders.

For the first time in history, someone could say that they were glad to take Scylla's route.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thank you all for your support.  
> Comments and criticism will always be welcome.


	4. Under Loch and Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The water holds many secrets.  
> None else knows this better than the one whose existence is kept a secret.

**Outpost 49**

It was a foggy morning, yet the Monarch Agents of Outpost 49 would know little of the weather above, stationed as they were at the bottom of a lake. The outpost itself was nestled upon the lakebed and adjacent to the entry of an exceptionally vast tunnel system underneath the Loch, with the Titan enclosure secured around the largest open "atrium," a veritable expanse of open water that extended for literal miles, and framed by rock reinforced with metal and tempered glass. Several tunnel-shaped outlooks overlooked the atrium, a majority of them acting as research labs, while the others acted as security hubs.

It was the northernmost security hub that Monarch Agent Cora Stewart found herself lumbering to for the day, and as soon as she arrived, she could not help but gaze deep, and oh so longingly, into the glass windows located behind her security console, all while the dark waters obscured the deep mystery that was Titanus Leviathan. She always wondered what the Titan truly looked like, but the imaging systems at her desk could only assist her so much - a general serpentine frame of utterly massive proportions lined with large, protruding fins, and blurry movement was all that the equipment had made her privy to, as if a veil had come over the Titan to prevent its visage from being seen.

What she desired was not blurred pixels or sonar imaging; no, what she wanted was to see the very heart of the Loch's mystery for herself, to catch a glimpse of Nessie - _Leviathan_ \- with her own eyes.

So lost in thought was she on this morn, however, that she did not expect Leviathan to be the one staring at her, with only its luminescent eyes visible through the tempered window. At first, she wondered how all the security protocols in place had not triggered, but the longer that she gazed into those bright, yellow eyes, the more she grew unconcerned for protocol as terror first bore through her, making her feel as if she were no more than a mere gnat; then, just mere moments later, it somehow, slightly, softened its gaze, as if it were a grandsire gazing upon their child's child. The unexpected shift in tone shook her, and she slid out of her seat and onto her knees in awe at the fact that a Titan would look upon her with such fond kindness. She found it rather jarring at first, but the warmth that ran through her was unlike anything else she had ever experienced.

Seconds later she soon experienced much more than fondness, as an entire range of emotional complexity washed over her - crippling bitterness, frosted words, heated arguments, the pain, _the regret_ \- all that and more, accompanied by faces so familiar yet still so far away, crashed into her with the force of a tsunami. Everything felt similar and yet so foreign, seemingly as if a veiled sense of déjà vu had caught her unaware with a flood of old acquaintances with blank nametags.

 _What were their names again?_ She found herself asking.

 **Their names are spoken for. They shall not show themselves to you, unless they themselves will** **it,** pierced a voice through the veil.

Cora nearly screamed as she jolted upright from the suddenness of the voice that flooded her mind's entirety, its pitch so impossibly low that it resonated even within her mind and her bones, all while its gravelly texture shook her down to her very core and left her feeling as if she had just stepped off a tectonic plate.

"That was you?" she asked aloud to herself, half expecting the Titan just outside to not be able to hear. "And what do you mean by that, anyway?"

 **Who else but the one in front of you, barn?** intoned the massive serpent before her. She flinched, her shoulders sagging not only from its slightly accusatory tone, but also from the sudden pressure that weighed down upon her.

**Know this - names are like faces, only much more fickle. Faces are so eager to show themselves to the world, but names? They shall reveal themselves only to those who have earned the trust of the faces they know.**

"What exactly are you, Leviathan?" asked Cora, holding her head with one hand, feeling the sudden onset of a splitting headache.

**I am the one who bears the burdens of the waters, just as the water bears the secrets of all who sustain from it.**

**I am that which encompasses the world, until it comes time for the world's branches to fall.**

**I am as the seas and the oceans, boundless by mere names,** boomed the Titan. Cora clutched at her head as her body shook and quaked beneath the vast reverberations, her heartbeat nearly erratic from the sheer force of sound. Leviathan let out a single huff as it waited a moment, allowing the human's frame time to settle from its unintentional bio-acoustic barrage.

 **I am the very tide of the earth, its ebb and flow,** it began once more, with a much more tolerable frequency not unlike the loud bass that would emanate from a passing car on the street. **I am one unbound by the burden of names, yet bearer of many, for a single name cannot hope to contain my entire being.**

"Are you like the currents then? A force that is always in motion?

**All that and more.**

"Could you tell me?"

**Perhaps, but only if you are able to comprehend that which I give, and have already freely given to you.**

"Are you talking about...secrets?"

The Titan simply laughed, the sound almost alien with how low its voice was. Cora could only picture an amused serpent.

 **I hold _all_ the secrets of the world. ** **I could have you privy to all of my own, and you still would not have managed to break through the surface, for all that which water hears, comes back to me.**

**Barn, I wish for you to understand that words hold power. A spoken word cannot be seen, but it can be heard by the mind and bring about absolute change. Words are meant to be spoken and heard, but secrets are words that strip their purpose away, as they are not meant to be spoken nor heard; only kept, and I am the sole gatekeeper - the vault, the lock, and the key - destined to die with my secrets.**

"Why not pass on the secrets of the deceased if they potentially hold benefit to the living?"

**If a secret is passed down, then it is no longer a secret, but a tradition, and a tradition of passing secrets is not one I am willing to oblige. Remind yourself what a secret is, and rationalize why no one knows of it. From the little white lie upwards, to the truths that could destroy a people, a secret untold is confidence kept, but a secret told is trust forever broken. Why would the waters ever dare betray the trust of all those who depend on it for survival?**

Cora widened for a moment before she sheepishly looked down at the floor. She paused before looking back through the glass, this time meeting the Titan's eyes. For a fleeting moment, its eyes flashed a brilliant hue of purple; then, in a single instant that felt like an eternity, Cora watched as the Loch's darkness slowly melted away, allowing her to see the Titan in all its glory as innumerable coils manifested themselves into view. Her eyes fell upon that impossibly large maw lined with countless rows of teeth. The Titan's body seemed endless - _How did Monarch even put it in containment? - It's far too large for the enclosure_ \- as rows upon rows of endless, marbled-gray scales mottled by an ancient layer of moss dissolved into view before her. Its grand tail hung limp from the corner of its mouth, and held such a size that it appeared it could blot out the sun's horizon.

**I am the very secret of these waters. I am of many names, barn - your superiors call me Leviathan, your contemporaries call me 'Nessie,' the net of human knowledge labels me 'Skip,' and your ancestors hailed me as Jörmungandr. Despite their best attempts, all of them failed to grasp what I truly am.**

"You're a conglomerate of misnomers...," said Cora.

**Perhaps so, but to every name, there is always a truth, and I have received many names throughout history. All of my names are unable to fully encompass what I am and what I am capable of doing, but they have all managed to hold a single, consistent piece of truth to them - this truth is the one secret of which I shall freely give to you.**

The Titan placed its snout mere inches away from the glass, and its eyes bore deep into her heart. Cora gulped.

Leviathan's voice held nothing back.

**When I have shed the confines of this cage, the end has only begun.**

Later that afternoon, Agent Cora Stewart was found unconscious with a bloody nose, her body laying adjacent to a cracked window. She made a full recovery after two days; her first action back on post was to request a transfer to another outpost.

Titanus Leviathan was found asleep in a different section of its enclosure, its body surrounded by a slow-growing bubble of exceptionally clear water. Its size was relabeled _"Indeterminate"_ after the entire latter portion of its body was found to have disappeared within a Hollow Earth tunnel that had been located right underneath it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'Barn' - Old Norse for "child"
> 
> Admittedly, this was a difficult one to write. I wanted to try to balance all of the influences I used while incorporating some bits of mysticism, as Leviathan was largely left a mystery in the film. I can only hope I was able to deliver.
> 
> As always, comments/constructive criticism will always be welcome.  
> Thank you all for your support.


	5. A Change in Understanding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hailed as the eldest by Monarch, Titanus Methuselah knows, and understands, a countless myriad of things.  
> Dr. Mariko wishes to know, and understand just a few of those things.  
> Methuselah grants knowledge, and understanding, of all she wants to know, and maybe gives her a bit more than what she expected.

_'To show humility of the self shows that thou art open to the greatest change.'_

Even after she had concluded her enlightening experience with Titanus Behemoth, Dr. Mariko still held onto some nibbling doubts about what the Titan had said to her. 

_'What that sort of change means to thee, thou must first seek on thine own.'_

What could the titan have possibly meant? How could one's humility lead to change, let alone what that could have meant to her?

In the back of her mind she knew that she had to pursue her answer ever the more, and yet the more she asked herself and the others around her, only more questions took their place in her mind. The more that she pursued the answers to those ever-spawning questions, the more she ended up confusing herself. For weeks, every waking day left her stuck in a slump, and unable to properly hold herself in a mass of weed-like questions. Heaven forbid she be allowed to properly conduct any research in a safe manner while in such a drowned mindscape.

_'And if thou art curious still even after, feel free to ask the one ye call Methuselah.'_

At that unbidden thought, she knew she had to pursue any lead she could. She filed for a temporary transfer to Outpost 67, out in Munich, Germany, and set out on a flight within the week. Onboard, another flood of questions soon filled her mind, but with a purpose now driving her, she managed to filter through a majority of them as she settled on, and committed to memory, the most burning few, before discarding the rest.

When she finally arrived in Germany, she received the strange sensation of stones rolling around in her skull, making her feel as if her head had become a makeshift rock-tumbler. It was her worst, most persistent headache to date; thankfully though, the headache eased exponentially when she arrived at the Monarch outpost, and it all but faded to a minor, intermittent ache when she finally entered the enclosure for one Titanus Methuselah.

She took a jeep parked near the entrance, and ventured a fair distance through the sea of trees until she arrived near a steep incline in elevation, a veritable mountain nestled in the middle of nowhere.

Mariko parked the vehicle in a space between two large trees, walked about two-hundred feet away from the closest visible incline, and sat down on the lush grass. She noted that the remnants of her headache had now completely disappeared. She felt a deep rumble from beneath her, and after a few moments, the ground gave way to a head with mounted horns akin to a ram's, its large and imposing maw manifesting just mere meters away from where she sat. The rest of its body emerged behind it, and where a mountain once lay, a living pinnacle now stood before her, with an enormous, empty chasm laying underneath it. Centuries' worth of dust and dirt fell from its body as its chest heaved with respiration.

It spoke straight into her mind with a great and unfettered tone, in a pitch somehow lower than even Behemoth's own contrabass, and sent reverberations down the entirety of her spine, echoing throughout her body, and within her bones.

_I can sense that you have spoken with one of my long-descended children, the one your kin have called 'Behemoth.' You smell of fur, and of the process that you humans call 'science.'_

_Now, what brings you here to me, child?_ it said to her, its head turned at a slight angle, so that one eye glanced upon her, its enigmatic gaze full of empathy, understanding, and patience.

"I just want to know...," she began, almost pitifully. Sitting down in front of a veritable mountain may not have been the best of ideas, she considered, as her nerves started to get to her. No one had actually bothered to tell her that Methuselah was this imposing compared to Behemoth!

She took a breath.

Then she released it.

"I just want to know - to understand - what Behemoth meant by saying that I am open to the greatest change, and what that greatest change is supposed to mean for me."

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ she thought to herself. _Why did you only go for one, instead of the three that you made your mind up on?_

The Titan closed its eyes as it hummed - reverberated - in contemplation. It lowered its body just enough to rest comfortably on its belly.

_Tell me, child, when you think of change, what do you see?_

Dr. Mariko sat, slightly caught off guard as she thought for a moment. "I think of the seasonal cycle - autumn to winter, then spring, with summer after, and then back to autumn. Even though we may get the season again the next year, it would never be the same as the year before."

A moment of silence, then, a rumble of contemplation.

 _Yes, I can see that. From your understanding, the seasons would be split into four quadrants of varied, characteristic weather patterns, gradually transitioning from one to the other until you experience each season's trademark weather. But, consider the parts of the world that have no possibility for one or more of those seasons -_ _areas such as_ _my daughter's desert, embraced by the sun during the day, and caressed at night by the moon and stars; the throne of my king, submerged in water, unknowing and uncaring of the paltry cycles of day and night, let alone of the land; the blasted, frozen prison of the intruder -_

_Despite everything that does or does not happen, the world still changes, and life goes on._

_Dear child, change is the most gradual of processes. It is more nuanced than just the shifting of seasons; it is the shifting of energy itself. Just as the snow and ice melt back into the water they once were, in order to feed the grass and the seeds it once covered, and just as_ _the leaves fade from a vibrant summer into a beautiful autumn before they fall to the earth and fade away, until they are reborn as buds anew in the spring - so too, must your view of things metamorphose, adapt, and accept the simple fact that the only constant in this vast universe is change._

"So how do I fit into all of this? How is being humble relevant?"

 _Child, have you ever known a prideful man to change?_ Mariko thought for a long moment, only to shake her head in the end.

_Precisely, child. A person of pride sees no fault within themselves, and therefore, they wholeheartedly believe that they do not need to change, that they are the exception. Truthfully, they are simply afraid of change, and so they reject it as often as possible._

_You, however, have the humility to accept your faults. Even if you are afraid of change, you still accept it as a part of life and move forward. As such, your humility gives you the ability to guide your thoughts and processes in a way that can not only better yourself, but those around you. Be as the leaves and the snow, so that as times change, you can still allow yourself a chance to grow and mature._

_Be as the humble soil. Take in the good, break down the bad, and nourish those in need as you endeavor to nourish your body and mind in a positive manner, so that you may grow above and past those who once trampled you._

"But what if I'm not able to balance everything? Am I supposed to sacrifice myself?" asked Dr. Mariko.

 _Child, a tree does not have shade for those who beg, but for those who need. You are allowed to place_ _focus on your own roots before you place any consideration on helping with another's leaves._

The Titan leaned in, its impressive horns shrouding Mariko and the surrounding trees in a sea of comforting shade.

 _You, and far too many other humans, are much too obsessed with the harvest to the lengths that you do not pay any mind to the fields._ _Do not burn your life away for the transience of what you might hope to achieve, when what mattered was the growth that you underwent on the path that you had chosen._

_Life is full of change, because life is about learning all that you can, adapting to, and overcoming whatever comes your way, **living** to the fullest, and loving those of whom whose presence gives you as much life as you do for them. Life is about change, because life **is** change. Seek not the mere pursuit of happiness, for the reward is fleeting; instead, seek purpose and meaning, for the path gives you purpose, and the days, meaning._

Mariko shuddered from the gentle pressure of the titan's steady presence, as she felt an immense weight lift from the entirety of her whole being.

The titan carefully placed a forelimb within reaching distance of Dr. Mariko's arm. She slowly extended her arm out with a moment of apprehension, though Methuselah made no move to stop her.

_Life is the greatest change. Your humility simply allows you to see what must be addressed so that you may change for the better, so that you may thrive._

Mariko's hand connected with the stony hide of the olden titan, and was shocked to feel warmth from what held the texture of boulders. Methuselah lowered its head, bringing itself nearly eye level to the absolutely tiny scientist.

They made eye contact.

_Life is precious, child. Being able to live it, is the ultimate joy upon this earth._

_So tell me, child, what does life mean to you?_

Mariko couldn't help herself as she leaned in and embraced the titan's forelimb, her miniscule frame absolutely dwarfed by Methuselah's own. She did not speak; instead, she merely held on, a smile of contentment on her face, as a single tear slid down her cheek. She marveled at how the rocky texture inexplicably turned into the softest, mossy touch. The titan did not mind the contact however, and welcomed it, merely letting out a tranquil, joyous growl.

For the child now understood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though it's one of my favorite original titans from KotM because of the aura of mystery around it, I'm not gonna lie, Methuselah was a bit tricky to write strictly because of how little was known about it.  
> I can only hope I did it some sort of justice.
> 
> Comments/constructive criticism is always welcome.


	6. Defrost the Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They waited eons.
> 
> They no longer have to wait, now.
> 
> They are free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just discovered Zalgo text the other day. Found that it works wonders for what I wanted in regards to Ghidorah.  
> That said, for clarity's sake,  
> Align Center is Ichi, Align Right is Ni, and Align Left is Kevin.  
> Zalgo text is all three speaking simultaneously.  
> Bold text is a surprise.

**Outpost 32**

_in the end, it is only us_

_we will remain_

_eternity is ours_

_as it should be_

_brothers, I grow bored_

_..._

_do something about it_

_I cannot_

_then stop complaining of things out of your control_

_no!_

_enough._

_I grow bored, and I want to be out_

_then break us out_

_I cannot_

_then hold no rights to be in complaint_

_I can and shall_

_CEASE THE NONSENSE_

_no!_

_brothers, do you not hear it?_

_if brother stopped, then perhaps_

_what funny noises they make with tiny tools_

_silence. can you not sense the entropy?_

_beautiful, betrayal._

_I would never betray you_

_...you irk me greatly, however, now_

_CEASE._

_our time to be free,_

_it is here at last._

_yay_

_..._

Dr. Emma Russell, accompanied by her daughter Madison, the extremist Alan Jonah, and his fellow mercenaries under his command, infiltrated Outpost 32 with relatively simple ease, the gunmen leaving mostly nobody alive in their wake as they took the Antarctic research facility with far too much ease.

"Don't look around, Maddie, just focus on me, okay?" Emma said to her daughter in an attempt to keep her calm. Jonah walked up to them with a single female hostage in tow. _Mariah Forrester, PhD.,_ read her I.D. Badge.

"Please, just kill me now. If that shadow in the ice gets out, it will never stop haunting me. Please, just make it stop!" said the doctor, thrashing in Jonah's grip with a surprising amount of force, as they all stepped into one of the elevators that descended into the frozen wastes deep beneath the surface. Only when they were halfway down did Dr. Forrester recognize Emma among the faces in the elevator with her.

"You traitorous bitch! You're about to doom us all!" she spat out, her tone relentless despite being the only remaining agent sided with Monarch. "You have no idea what is about to happen here if you continue on this path. The rumors at this outpost, each and every single one, are true, and that damn devil in the ice won't stop whispering heresies into my ear."

Dr. Forrester rounded up on Emma and dug a finger into her chest. "If only you had done your homework. This outpost was kept off-book for a reason. People like him-," she said, pointing at Jonah, " are just like that _thing_ in the ice - perfectly willing to wipe the slate clean for their own selfish reasons. The beast in the ice will not stop, not until this very planet is dead and beyond redemption just like it did to Ven-"

_how nice of you to talk so highly of us to our esteemed guests, d̴̠͠ě̵͓̣̥a̶̡̞͈̹͊ͅr̷̡̬̘̬͔̉̈́͝ ̶̢̬̳̼̐͛̍d̵̼̃̑̽̂õ̴͇̱͚̽c̶̡̢͐̎͝t̷̘̗̝̗̦͂͂ŏ̸̼͒̅̐͝r̷͔̟͕̠̗̃͛̚͝_ ,

_such nice words_

_can we keep her for compliments?_

_she is already ours_

Dr. Forrester's skull vibrated as the three heads spoke, despite her sudden stillness as she was speaking to Emma. Her eyes went wide and unblinking as her jaw slowly dropped - a low, unearthly drone of a foreign _sutra_ escaped her mouth. The unsettling development made even Jonah curious, perplexed, most disturbed at the unexpected development.

"What happened to her, mom?" Maddie asked, as their elevator reached the bottom. Everyone stepped out; Dr. Forrester, however, ever so slowly, as if hypnotized, walked up to the ice, to the perplexed looks of Jonah's men.

"I honestly have no idea," Emma replied, arching an eyebrow.

W̶͕̘̿ͅe̶̢̲͍̘͆͘͘l̵̥̮͑͋͛c̶̡͍̣̈̉͐͆͝ô̸̡̬͈̫͂̅m̵̮̱̥͎͈͋̋̀̕͘ȩ̴̙͗̇̎͂ ̵̫͍̉͛ẗ̷̘͓̣́ö̵̧̻̮̯́̈́̿̅ ̸̡̡̛̯͋̈́t̶̳̱̥̉͑͝h̶͎͖̹͖͙̃̆e̵̛͈͇̜̗̿ ̸̞̜̤̥̆͌̈́r̷͚̰͇̮̎ő̸͔͕͖͈͚ÿ̴̰̬̺̦̫́̐̋̍͘ạ̶͈͊͆̉̆͂l̶̦̈́̈́͝ ̴̡͈̱̙̹̏p̸͓̪̩̻̈́͆͆r̸͕̞͉͈͍̂̑ö̴̤̮̬͇͔c̷̫͍̳̎e̶͕͍͙͓̅͜s̴̛̲̓s̵̲͖͛́̓͘̕i̵̥̠͓͚̽̈̽ö̵̲́ṋ̸̞̹̘̏,̵̢̟͚̙̰̿̿̎̃ boomed all three heads at once, into the minds of all those present.

_such a beautiful entropy_

_we hope to entertain_

_now that you have finally arrived_

Ẇ̴̼͜o̴̯̜̻͆͑̓̒̽̄͝ņ̸͖̑̃̇̈́'̵̠̹͎̠̬̠̭͈̼͘t̸̗̆͊̒̃͝͠ ̵̨̯͇͖̪̫̝̼̲͍̄̿̾͊̈́̑̈y̸͖̎̔̄̍̐̈̚o̶͙͈̭̰͚͒͗̽̈͌̈́̏̂ư̴̙̾ ̷̮͓̼̝͛͗͋̈͋͝j̷͕͕́̽ơ̷̧̗̣͛͑̿͆͗̋̉͗ḯ̴̼̱̹̻͉̲͊̌̑̀͜͝ṅ̴͎̪͇͎͚̤̽̄ ̷̬̞̣̟̩͆ủ̵̠͍̞͕̱̤͚̉̈́s̶̪͎̲̪͜?̴̛͖̉̅̎̿̊̈́

"Mother of God..." Asher commented off to the side, clutching his head.

"She had nothing to do with this," Jonah retorted, his expression one of pain as he held his head in his left hand.

"Mom, get it out of my head! The chanting! It hurts!" Maddie cried out.

But Emma was unresponsive, her right hand reaching out as she walked ever closer to the block containing the frozen monstrosity.

"Mom, stop! Don't touch the ice! What are you doing?"

Ă̶̗͚͖͕̟l̸̛͉̲̻̂͌̈́̽̍ĺ̵̻̞͎̍̄͐͊̋́͝ͅ ̸̧̞̪̯̜͕͚͐̍͛̈̑͂͛̏̂͝w̸̳͖̲̠̣̱̘͌̇h̶͔̤̓̆̉̍͠o̶̰͔͇͇̗͚̩̻͈̩̔͘ ̵̢͇̹̘̺̞̫͋̎͜s̴̞̟̺͖̼̦̺͉͗̍͊̊̒͛͜e̵̖͍̩͈͂͆̇́̂͆͋͛e̵̡̨̛͖̝̓̄̚͜ķ̸̡͇̖̚ ̶̭̈́̊̅ḛ̵̢̧͐̾͗͋͑͘͝͠n̷̢̛̯͕̝͎̍̄̋̓́̊̑̚ṯ̴̦̭͓̲̼̈́͗͒͑͛̈̄̔͠r̵̜͈͚̈́͆͛̔͐͠ơ̸̩̜̻͔̮̖͓̽͋́̐͆̚p̶̤͇͎̻͉͕̟̐ỷ̷̨͍̝̿,̷̡̎̂́̕ ̷͎̫̭̝̝͖̹̉̃͂̄̑̏́̚͝c̶̹̦̹͇̩̐̎̎̎̇̚o̴̟̘̦̰̣̓̿̓̈́͊̄͘̚̚̚͜m̷͓͈̼͑͛͋̐̀e̴̛͚̫̾̾̆̌̀̌͑̕ͅ

And Maddie could only watch as her mother, Jonah, and all his mercenaries approached the giant block of ice in an unresponsive, trance-like state.

The surreal reality of the situation caused her to run off, a slight limp in her step, yet unnoticed all the same, as she held her pounding head in her left arm, the ORCA stolen away under the other, walking along the elevated platforms above where her mother and Jonah's men were located.

"Maddie!" shouted Mark Russell as he stepped off the elevator and immediately sighted her. Maddie sighed in relief when her dad ran up to her and embraced her tight against his chest, but she did not dare to attempt to relax. Not when hostiles were right below them.

Her gut twisted when a brief standoff occurred between her mom and dad, as he had his gun trained straight at Jonah. She wished she could forget the blank look on her mom's face, the uncaring stares that bore on her from Jonah and his men. _The disturbing chants that poured forth from their unmoving, open mouths as they advanced -_

"M̷̮͉͛͜a̶̛̬͎̱ď̵̡̮̭͉d̸͍̼̲̫̖̤̄̀̈̿̎i̵̳͌ę̴̣̞̗͖̘̫͍̑̏́͌͒͐̿,̸̧̐̌̇̔ ̴̧̧̛̩͓̖̫͒͋͜ĉ̴̠o̷̠̳̤̬̅͒̆͂m̸̖̩̹̼͍͕̗̆̑̾̿̕e̸̜̿͗̉͑," said Monster Zero, using her mother's mouth, her _voice_ , as her hand held the detonator.

"...no."

"̵͚͉̰̀̌͒S̴͓̊̈ù̷̞͔͗c̶̞̽h̸͍̭̆͘ ̸͉̻̌̽ą̷̝͒͛ ̸̠̘̪̎ṙ̷̹̱͉̕è̷͈b̸̹̈e̵̛̗͈̾́l̷̛̫̳̝l̶̤̳̼̽̿̅i̷͈̟̥̋ŏ̶̟̣ͅu̵̝̝̰͊s̶̭̽̊͝ ̸̭̤̞̈́y̵̫̟̣͊̈́̐ō̵̘͙͔͑͝ü̷̗̜͋n̵̖̱͛͝g̶̡͉͉̅͝ ̷̘̱̍m̶̺͇̹͗́i̵̙͗͆̈ṉ̵͉̒͝͝d̵̳̰̈͐̕.̵̡̓ͅ ̶̳̜̉ ̷̜̤͒̿̒P̸͔̬̉ê̷̖̊͝ͅr̶̺̥̻͛͊̚ī̷̡͓̞̒̑s̸̲͈̻̈́̆̇h̴̖͎̞̒͂ ̷͙̀w̴̏͜i̸̤̣̦̊t̷̪̘̀̎ȟ̵̪̟̩̾̿ ̴̦̳͈̋̔ţ̶͖̥͝h̷̗͔̘́̈́e̷̗̋͌ ̸̘̮̍̂͒r̷̥̼͝ͅḙ̸̡̆̇̉s̴̥̖͆ẗ̵̢̪́̉ ̸̘͙̅͊̐o̶̖͐̍f̴̡̧̢͑̚͠ ̵̺̀́y̴͚̾͆o̶̹͉͘͘ṳ̵͂̚r̷̜͋̔͒ ̸̨͎͊k̸͖͙̪̆į̴̫̔̾n̶̼̠̓̂̎ḍ̵̃,̵̧̪̪͗̈́"̸̩̮͒ they said, as Emma's thumb pressed down on the trigger at the exact moment that Col. Foster managed to successfully snipe Asher, a traumatic switch that snapped Jonah out of his trance.

The explosion thoroughly rocked the outpost.

_lead them well, Alan Jonah_

_and they shall serve you well_

_won't you join in the fun, Alan Jonah?_

Within the panic, none of the Monarch agents could prevent Jonah's escape as he led his Titan-hypnotized men, and Emma, back to their own aircraft. He had left Dr. Forrester behind within the depths of the outpost.

W̵̧̱̼̲̦̻͇̙̲͗̅̃́͊̆́ę̸̨͉̩̼͇͖̝̱̫̙͕͓͇̉̄̃̌͊̑̈̔̽̚ļ̴̢̧̛̻͍̼̖͒̽̾̐̓̏̐̈́c̷̡̨̛̗͔͉̜̳̞͎͈̯̙̭̊̊͊̎͑̐̎̕ơ̸̢̨̺̟̮͕͗́̿̀͐͠͝͝m̵̨͚͎͙̙̭̏̈́̃̃̈́͑̈́͛͂̄̇͋͌̋͠e̵̛̝̼͆̍̀͘͘͝ ̷̨̨͙̗͇̖̙͚͚͕̰̀͒̍͜͜b̶̡̧̹̫̳̹͕̰̍̾̐̓̓͋̿͠͠ą̴̛͚̰̻̱͍̹͚͖̓ͅc̷̨̡͙̗͚̓͆̌͒̔́͆̉͂͊̂͘͜͜͝͝k̶̡̗̥̖̝͍̱̬͇̘͈͔̈́͑̄̈̅̊̕͝ͅͅ,̶̺̪̠͎͒͑̓͂̿͘ ̷̡̧̪̫̭̪̩̫̟͚̖͔̜̆͋̃͆̄̈͐͆̑̉͝d̴̼͎͙̞͈̳̺̠̬̝̯̠͉̊̒̃ͅe̵̟̫̭̲̻̿ͅâ̴͍̣̦͈̲͊̂̓̄͑̔̑͝r̶̨̢͈̹̝̫͚̜̞̞͕̜̣͙̂͐̌̌͒̃̐̐̈́̕̚ ̸̡̹̘͉̙̱̝͙̱̪͎̫̯̀̐̌̂͊̂̈́ͅͅd̵̛̬͍͖̰̝̫͉̲̗̞̲̙̅̋̓̃̄͗̑͂̓̔̋͜õ̵̡̧̲͔͓͖͕͕̹̹͔̜̂͑͐̀̇̾́̾͝͝c̴̡̛͔͍͉̱͔͔͓̙͚̖̦͓̱̑͌̊͌͋͒̾͒͛̂̚͠͝͝t̵̠̪̎̅͑õ̷̟̟̯͙̺̥̻͇͚͇͎͊ŕ̷̨͈̜̥̣̥̫̓̃̎̽̓̒̾̒̚.̸̡̨̨̨̩̺̯̮͖̥͍͎̠̠͛́̏̓̓̓̂̔̇͛̍̕̚͝͠

The three heads chuckled as one as they drew Dr. Mariah Forrester into their golden shadow, before they turned their attention towards Madison, as she fled with her father.

_run all you'd like, little one,_

_but you cannot hide,_

_fleeing is temporary_

_we are eternal_

_for what was_

_what is_

_and what will be_

_shall meet their demise_

_under our golden shadow of darkness_

_and there will be weeping -_

_under the gnashing of our teeth,_

_within the furnace of our storm's fire -_

_as we weed out his pathetic kingdom of all life_

W̸͔̯̣̽͂̇̐̃̕͘ơ̷̻͈̜͂̏̑͋͗̄̈́͌̏n̸̦̰͐'̵̛̫͂̃͆̋̈́̈̓̈͐̓̚̕͝ț̵͎͚̭̝̘̟͙̣̙̦̮͉̺̬͑̽̐̆̇̂̃͋̃̀̀̇͠ ̷̨̟̻͚̅̽̒́y̶̻̘̻̭̝͖͓̙͈̯̝̳͍̽͛̉̔͋̎̈́̑̕̚ͅo̴̮͈͉͍̞̦̻͓̙̰͙̒̈́̈͋̔̒̿̑̈́̄̐̈́͐͠u̷̫̟͉̝̲̳̗͎̝̥̍̏̽͊̿͊̓ ̵̢̢̡̭̮̺̰̮̭̤͓̼̥͑̆͌̏̍͛̔̚͠j̶̡̼͍͕̭̫͗̿̋͆̑̃̄͑̽̄̏̈͘ͅő̴̻̳̳̜̞̯̪̝̄̈́͂͜ỉ̷̲̥̮̱̹͙̑̇̈́n̴̛̬͚͎̤͚̠͎͑̀̋͘̚ ̷̳̦̼̮̹͓̫̫̻̹͔̇̆́̓̓̓͐͝͝ṯ̵̢̢̘͍̮̗͚̼̀̀̕h̶̨̛̥̞͔̹͌͊̃̍e̸̡̢̪̭̞̫̖̬͈̳̳̦̺̮͑̈́̋̅̃͛͐̕͘m̵̨̹̺͖̭̮̫͎̜͉̃̓̇̈́̑͛̀̓͆̔̆͗͘ ̵̪̻͊i̶̡̺̰͍̩̼̹̟͖͖͈͖̘̳̓̀̃͒̃̈́̈́̑̇͂̾n̴̰̜͓̫͉̈̎̚ ̷̛̘̰̺̜͚͖̙͚͎̰͉̰͎̯̈́͗̑̈́͒̅̑d̵͓̰͕̓̈́́̑̎̐̋̓͝é̶͔̠̹͍͔͚͎̣͕͛́̇̍̋̄͌̀̒̏̓͜͠͝s̴͍͉̳̦̝̳̥̔͐p̷̢̮̭̮̮̺͕͇̳͈̣͈̊̿͛̿̄̽͝͠a̸̢̱̯̬̜̫̻̙͎̟͌̌̆͗̋͛̈́̈́͗̿̈́̍̉ͅi̶̪̙̔͑̀̒̿̽̋͒̒̾̈͊̓̃ͅŗ̵̯̘̜͗̽,̴̧̼͉͙̝̠̊͂̔͛̈̈́͐͛͝ ̷̛͇͊̾̍̇͋̐̆̒̉͒M̶̧̢̯̥͕̦͔̩̼̻̞̤̤̄̾͂̅̂a̶̧̳̟̱͎̦͗̂͆̒̆͂̐̈́̇̚d̶̡̧̗͈̫͚̒̅̉̾̈́͐̃̇͗̈́̽̀͝į̸̛͕̬̎́ṣ̴̠̻͕̠̠̗̏͒͛͑̐͋̚o̴̜͔͎̠̗͚͛͑͛̽̂̉͂̑͆͠ǹ̶̨̫̺̜͓͉̠̰̠͈̈͆̎̕͘̚?̴̛͉͗̎̊͛̊̈͋̇̉̊͊̚

"Stop talking to me!" Maddie seemingly cried out at nothing as she and her dad, along with a contingent of G-Team, fled the absolute ruination of Outpost 32, as the building collapsed in the shadowed, icy chasm where it once stood. Golden bolts of lightning ran across the massive dust cloud that hovered just below them as they peered into the clouded abyss.

"Maddie, what is it, what's wrong?" asked her dad, his brow furrowed in concern as he held out a hand to keep her upright and clear from the edge.

"That _thing_ down there in the ice, they keep whispering into my head! They won't leave me alone!" Maddie cried.

"What do you mean that they're whispering into your head? Titans don't talk to people. And in the plural?"

"This one does, dad! It has three heads and each head whispered to us - to mom, to Jonah and his men, and they all obeyed it without question, almost like they just fell into line. It said it was seeking entropy," Maddie said, falling into silence when a low, droning chant cut through the tense, Antarctic quiet, instilling anxiety within every Monarch agent present. The wind drew harsh as it was pulled into the polar abyss.

"The Heart Sutra?" Serizawa asked himself as he heard the oddly familiar yet tense words accompanied by a three-beat rhythm that laid in stark contrast to his beating heart. He stood next to Dr. Graham right outside the Osprey transport as they waited for the others. His eyes slowly widened in realization as he thought on the meaning behind the ominously sounded words that rolled over the frozen wasteland.

"Dr. Graham, once we evacuate, we must have Dr. Chen look further into this."

Dr. Graham could only nod back slowly, only for her face to express horror as she saw a large, spike-studded tail emerge from the void, an unsettling rattle piercing the air as large spikes flexed themselves. A long neck followed, as the head shook off excess snow.

Another tail followed suit, trailed by another neck. This head lazily looked around, its tongue lolling out of its mouth, as if amused.

A third head emerged between the other two, looking at the insignificant humans with disdainful malice.

"You gotta be fu-"

The voices three boomed intrusively into the minds of every human present, interrupting Barnes.

_look, brothers, after all those eons_

_they never grew any taller_

_so very small_

_it is time_

_can we keep them?_

_no!_

_can we crush them underfoot?_

_even better, let us show them..._

_Ö̵̡̢̦̠̜͍̭͖͓͖̘̦͖́͛͑̈́̚͘ͅͅǘ̶̮̊̎̉͆̑͛̑̄͝͠r̵͓̮̖̙̘̥̼̞̲̟̺̈́̿͑͋̅͊̋͒̋̿̋̇͘͜͝͠ ̴̦̱̠̘͙̦̮̪͎͉͈̠̭̹̪̆͌͋̈̾̑̓̊͛̈́̒͗͌̃ș̸̨̛̛͈̮̟̪͕̜̘͉͔̼̦͊̈́́̌̄̓͆̽͜ͅẗ̶̨̨̜͕͚̦͕̠̦̂̅̃̿̅̽̒̃͘͘͘͠͝ȏ̸̧̰͇̩̰̩͎̀̃̕r̵̨͔͇̼̰̰̥̥̈́̒͋͐ͅm̶͕͇̳̞̖̑͒̓͑̈́̂̚.̸̯̪͎̝͓͉͆͐͒̒̉̅̈̈̕̚.̵̛̛̜̣͙̪̹̣̠́̉̑͆̀͛̉͆̎̈́͋̚.̸̟͗̍͊͐̑̄̓͂͒̈́̕͜͠͝͝_

And everyone froze at the spine-chilling tone of its absolution.

A mighty roar from the middle head brought forth horrible streaks of gold lightning that tore apart the skies - a powerful wave of sound that shook every Monarch member back to their senses. The left head brought itself low, lackadaisically knocking over an unfortunate G-Team member onto their haunches. It cackled in what sounded a hellish, amused delight as the soldier yelped. The right head simply growled in disdain.

All as the sky ceaselessly sparked in arcs of jagged gold.

The three heads screeched between each other, as if bickering. Mark and Maddie looked at each other for a brief moment, before everyone took the opportunity to run back to the aircraft where Serizawa and Graham anxiously waited, their faces pale upon hearing Monster Zero's bone-chilling voices within their own minds. Within the aircraft, Dr. Chen and Dr. Stanton both shivered - Ilene, for hearing, _feeling_ , the sheer wrongness that was Monster Zero's absolutely abyssal, voiding presence, and Rick, experiencing for what he would consider to be his first spiritual, out-of-body experience, _in front of a three-headed titan._ The two shared a glance, their eyes a gate to their shaken souls.

A tail came down, almost lazily, effortlessly crushing two soldiers. A great and mighty wing burst forth from the ice, causing massive chunks of frozen ground to fly every which way, with several of them of them landing on a number of unfortunate soldiers.

Another wing emerged, and the three heads roared together at the human gnats in front of them.

The soldiers, scared out of their wits but remembering their training, simply fired their weapons in an effort to distract the utterly colossal titan away from Monarch's current command personnel. Barnes fired a few rounds then ran, knowing better than to stay in one spot.

"Get us airborne, stat!" Col. Foster shouted to Griffin as she and Barnes bolted into the Osprey, quickly ushering in Serizawa, Vivienne, and Mark and Maddie. "Emergency vertical takeoff at max RPM, and contact the Argo to prepare for an in-flight boarding."

The Osprey's engines whirled to life rapidly, but nothing could be done when the three-headed behemoth suddenly reared back, their necks alit in gold and light, as an imminent sound of doom charged the air.

"Oh shi-"

And the soldiers who had stayed behind to ensure the safety of their superiors soon knew no more, as the devil of three heads loosed one beam each, the crackling, twisted energy that resembled sinister bolts of lightning descending from their draconic maws.

Those within the Osprey's confines could only look on in horror, as the three golden beams warped the gravity of the blast zone to such an extent that time itself _bent_ to the whims of the infernal titan. In that singular moment, they could still hear the screams of the soldiers as they pierced the air, even though the bodies from which they came from had been reduced to naught but the dust that made them.

Such was the force of the focused blast, that the Osprey's systems were instantly fried despite being a fair distance away.

When the three devils were done, the left head licked at the ashes.

_stop that_

_but look at how much ash they made_

The middle head pulled the left head's horns, not unlike an older brother pulling the younger's hair.

_try it again_

_will not try again_

_see that it does not_

The right head simply glared at the craft that the tiny humans had fled into.

_the little ones think themselves safe_

_oh? even entropy's little daughter..._

The three-headed titan slowly made their way towards the disabled Osprey, the Monarch agents looking out the windshield in horror as the devilish _dragon_ leisurely paced its way towards them.

M̵̫̙̩͕̼̮͙̙̮̜͓͈̾͑̍́̒̀̏̈̆͐̌̾̑͝a̴̡̲͚̫̗͍͉̠̺̰̎̍̃̎̊̓̓͘͘͝͠d̴̹̦̭͊̓̀̐̃̒̈̿̓̚ȉ̶̡̙̞͔̹̻̹̤͈̪͚͎̖̅̓͌͌̈̈̇̾͝ŝ̴̡̫̜͇̠̤̗̼̤͚̟͎̻̉͜͝ơ̸̝̤͆́̋͘ņ̸̨̝̆,̶̲͎̫̾̄̂͐̉̑̈́̽̑̕͜ ̶̨̡͖̙̫̈́o̶̧̜̩͚͕̰̬̬̜͉͂h̴͎̑ ̸̦̻͊̒̊͂͑̑̒̓̌͗̇͘̕̚͝l̷̛̪̖̮͈̤͌̂̐̀̇̑͊̒͊̄̋͝į̷̨̟͈͖̗̰̫͆̋̓̇͛͌̌͌͗̄̚̕ͅt̴̢̧͙̘̘̭̲̝̱͉̓͗̆͗̽̊̇͗͒̈͌̕͜͜͝t̵͕̜̦͕̤̟̬͇̝̯̲̰̜̬̖̂̄̅͛̔̈́͂͝l̶̛͓̦̝̬̼̱̻͉̪̝̰̖͕̹̩̒̄̍̈͂̑̐̄̾e̵̢̧̳̭͇͎̹̥͇̲̖̘̫̍́̂ͅ ̶̭͓̖͙̻̼͚͙̼̗̹͕̿̂̒͑͒̿̅̚̚͜ͅM̷̢̡͕̼̬̦̥͈͙̻̙̣̊̊͘͠a̴̺̱̲̳̖͉͍͙̽̃̈́̊̈́͐̈́́͌̚͠͝ͅd̸̦̜̆͒͜į̶̛̻̠̱̩͓̝̳̏̐̕s̷̢̡̨̭͎̹̲͠ơ̸̢͎͍̹͇͔̽̑̅̔̇̈́̂͛̎̚̕n̵͍̦͓̆̓̈͒́͌̈́̋͘,̸̧̱̺͓͍̪̈́̓͑͒̒̒̊ ̷̡̯̜͕̩͚͉̜̭̦̱̬̖͇̆̓̇̎c̵̬̟͔̼͓̤̤͆̏̋̔̓ǫ̷̲̙͕̥͎͐̃̑͆͜m̴̢͍̤̰̋͋ȩ̵̨̧̪͎͚̙͔͔͕͎̳̣͚̦́́̏̅̀͐̇̐ ̵͚̹͖̪̦̮̦͆̍̀̂̈́͂͆͘̕͘̚͠ͅb̸̛̜̟̦̭̠͛̽a̷͔̙̗͚͗͒c̷̤̜̈́͊̚k̵̢̢̡̧̺̲̪̥͉̝̤̯̗̬̲̐̐̒̽̈́̈̄́͛̾̿̽̎͒̓.̵̨̨̛̟͇̙̗͈͉͓͚̾̀̓͂͋̓͘͘͝͝͝ ̶͉͗̅̔̋̒ ̶̰̤̿̎̊̊̋͌͆̈͊͛̕̚͠Ŵ̴̧̻̖̤̥̽̏͠͝ỏ̵̤͙̫͖͖̈͆̔̂̐͒́̇n̵̗̝͆̈̋̿̿͑̍͘͠͝͝'̷̮̺̈́͒͌̽̈́͑͌̑̚̚͘͠͠t̸̪̯̹̬͖͙̫͐͌̓̌̄͊̊̃̅̈́̆̃̈́ ̸̡̡̱͈̳͔̙̩̿͜ͅy̴̧̞̮̲͇̩̪̙̳͛ö̸̢̨̧̺̻̼̼̹̯̤́͋̋̅̽̃͋̚͝ͅű̶̠̌̐̈͐͋̿̄̄̔̎͘͝͝ ̸̻͙̫̞̹͓̟̻̺̥̥̟͋̔̐̈͌̈́̕̚c̴̱̗̑͛̽̒͂̉̐̈͋́̋̅͂o̸̡̧̤̬̲͕̻̯̭̩̭͆̈́͆͆̓̈́͒̃̈̂͛̿͝͠m̷̱̖̗͈͕̽̕̕͜è̸̢̜͈̜̹͕̠̭̙͈̪̄̈͂͆͐͗͊̏͑̐̐͝ͅ ̷̫͔͋̓̉̌̑̓̓̓̚̚͜͠b̸̢̧̧̙̟̮̬̪͈̙̟̗̬͊̈́͑̃̾̇͂͘͠ͅǎ̶̮͍͉̩͙̈́ĉ̵̗̣̱͍̱̺̥̫̄̈̀͛k̶̗̩̰̟͚̫͗͗͌̆͌̎ ̸̪̾̃̍̾͛̄̾̇̚̚t̸̨̧̧̡̫̱̹̣͇̥̞̬̼̝̘̎̊̀̋̚͝ǫ̶̨̫̟̲̮̳̫͔̻͇̏̄̍̓̈́͐̆̋̌̓͊͘̕͝ͅ ̸̡̧̖̳̠̩͉͔̥̩͙̝͗̇̂̔̕ŷ̴̭̫̓̅̄͒̚ơ̸͎̰̙͔͚̤̺͖͈̪͓̄̀̈͋͗̾̆̋̆̿͌͗͘͜u̸̳̭̪̝̭̞̻̳̳̘̥̒̇̐̂r̶̢̛̤̱̗̺̗̗̒͒̿͝ͅ ̴̞̖͂͋̽̑m̷͇͖͙̰͉̙̰̼̝̠̬̣̥̫̎͗̅̏̔̍̍̓̇̈́͐͝͝o̵͈̜̗͙̬͋̆̐͑̃̈́̆͋̾̕̚ṯ̸̙̱̰̼̬̫̼͈̥̻̋̽h̷̛̘̖͓̞͇͍͐̄̎̆̆͋̆̃̕e̴̛̻̘͚̥̝̭͎̗̎̃͗͊̏̆̉͠r̶͈̖̹͇̱͈̠̺͇͌͘ͅ?̵͎͗͛̄͠

W̶̦͇̰̝̭̰̬̺͚͕͈͈̄̈̑̊̓͂̍͊̂͜ͅõ̷͍͕̖͕͚͔̭͉̯̐͐͆̽̎̋̑̆͘͝͝n̶̼͔̙̮̖̫̉̋̌̃̐͌͝'̸̛͕͉̌̅̉̆̒̏̋͆̾͛̎̈̈́͠t̷̜̠̱͓̮̗̲̘͔̥̜̣̳̼͂̊͐͆̄̚͝ ̴̧̛̻̰̪̿͛̍̃̏̊͒̏̀̈̕̚͜ỵ̴̙͇̜̟̙̦͖͓̮͎͐̑͂̏͂̋͜ǒ̴̢̆̔̌͆̔͘ͅu̵̩̹̣͓̯̹̗̪͔̺͕̙̾̎̏̾̒̀̈́̋̏̈́̒ ̵̜̠͙̺̏́͋̒͐̂̾̃͒͑̑͘͝ė̶̪̳̭̪̝̂̊͛͒͊̀̍͝m̶͕̱͎̅b̸̪̖͊͂r̷̠͕̼̮̜̘̼̳̩̝͌ͅa̷̛̛̮̿̎͂͆͗̍͋̓̐̇̎c̵̡̨̥͚̭̱̳̟̩̋̔̚ͅe̴̥̦̝͓͖͕̒̂̉͐͊̃͌ ̷̢̪̙̖͉̲̻͍͕̖̐̔̿͛͂͐̕̚͜t̴̨̰͉͈̠̽́́̑̉̐͗̎̿̑́͝h̵̢̠͉͕̟͍̝̱̹̬̆̉̂̉ȇ̵͖̳̦͍̜͇̑ ̶͇̜̣̹͔͉͓̂̀̉ḯ̶̭̌̉̿͛͛͌̚͝ņ̴̣̻͙̟̬̘̍e̸͖̲͈̼̹̟̻̙̟̭͌̐̔͌͊̄͐̅̈́̈̍̚ͅv̵̡̳̞̦̹̖̹͈͚̾̊̍̌̈́͌̎̕̕͠͝ȉ̵̮͍͉͖̳̯̏̈́̓̆̐̈́͌͐͜͝t̶̢͇̭̾̇͆̔͌͋͑̉͘ą̵̠̗̠̆̈́͌̈́̄̾̑̆͂̌̇̕b̶̦̌͋̍̋̽͗̋̐̿̆͛̚l̶̡̤̭̹̳̠̙͎͉̜̫͍͉̺̬̍͆͐̆̃̂̈̈́̈̓e̶̡̥̱̩̥̖̱̫̘̟̼̱͇̝̠̓?̷̧̧̝̟̅̎

_I refuse you!_ Maddie cried out in her head, as she threw the ORCA onto the floor of the Osprey. She did not dare entertain the constant intrusions into her mind, yet she could barely hold back fearful tears as the golden demise whispered cruelties into her mind, as the three heads gazed into the aircraft's glass windows. The left head bumped the Osprey so casually, as if it were a toddler rough-housing with a toy. The right head was much more aggressive, however, as it _bit_ the aircraft, a large fang impaling into the side of the hull, missing Dr. Graham by a few scant inches. A sudden rush of wind flew in as the fang vacated the ship.

Maddie froze, not from fear, however, when she felt a solid presence upon her mind, almost as if the three intruders were suddenly booted out. She looked around the transport, noting that the other Monarch agents, even Dr. Graham and her dad, went still in very much the same manner, despite the chaos outside.

She saw the ice crack and shatter in a linear fashion outside the Osprey's damaged windows. Then, an ethereal, blue glow just below the surface.

A hulking, bipedal frame broke through the frozen floor several yards away. Looking around, she saw brief panic and confusion, but Dr. Serizawa and Aunt Vivienne seemed oddly relaxed. Within mere moments, under the bright, blue shadow, Maddie and the others soon fell at ease when a still, strong voice entered their minds.

**I am your king. I am here. I am here with you.**

Godzilla roared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise plot! I suppose you could say it was time for the story to thaw out and progress.
> 
> What will freeing Ghidorah result in?  
> Perhaps a few other familiar, famous faces?
> 
> Stay tuned~
> 
> Comments/constructive criticism will always be welcome.


	7. Ballad of Ice and Fire, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It began once more in a land of ice and snow;

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zalgo text is a liiiiiiittle too much fun. Help.

**I am your king. I am here. I am here with you.**

  
Godzilla roared.

\---

_oh look,_

_the little king thinks he can save them_

_how silly of him_

_to think he can protect the ants_

Ḷ̴̋ȅ̴̖͗̇͝t̵̜̬̰͇̲̓̐̾̄ ̷̛̰͍̇͌ű̵̼̠̍͘͝s̴̘͖̪̤̄̋͛͘ ̷̡̙̻̣̹̈́̌́̒r̷̤̲̒̒̎́̔e̵̺̜̗̐̿ḓ̴̟͉̰̜͆̍ů̷̞͇̤͆̉̌c̴͖̤̊̐̿̊̅e̴̼͉̱̱͓̍͛͂͂͘ ̷̘͔̜͍͔̓͘h̸̬̦͌î̸̧̝̻s̷̥͙͓̮̃̎͜ ̷̧̛̰̤̮̐̎̀͝ͅk̸̡̛͇̮̬̯̎̓̂ī̶̛̖̦͌n̵͇̰̎͝g̶̥͕̱̍̂̎̾͝d̷̢̹̟̫̏̊̃͗o̸͈̼͊m̴̤̂̅̆̽ ̵͈̺͉́ẗ̴̰̗̐͌̿̄͜o̷̧̬̮͂̓͗ ̷͓̈́͌̀͠a̴̬͚̓ş̵̧̏͌͊͑h̷̞̀̊ͅḕ̷̡̧̦̔s̷̮̿̈̊.̵̗̲̦̝̚

Nervous systems were made alit by the force of the Titans' speech. A barrage of four different voices - three of discordant malice, one an unwavering strength - washed over the minds of all present. The Monarch agents could only look on as Godzilla took up a tall stance, his spines aglow with blue fire. Within the compromised aircraft, the air glowed with an intermittent blue light, while golden sparks flew like sprites between the Monarch agents.

Not one to be easily outdone, the three heads of the golden monstrosity reared up to full height, their tails rattling, their wings fully splayed. The disproportionate size difference made it clear - Monster Zero was a monster among Titans.

And the king made it clearer that he hated looking up...by barreling towards the interloper, his sights set on the three writhing necks, as Monster Zero surged forward with a single beat of their wings. They collided with a tangible impact - the shockwave cutting into the ice and forming vast cracks that rapidly spread throughout the battleground.

Godzilla stomped to rebalance himself from the force of the impact, his weight inadvertently speeding up the ground's instability, as entire sheets of ice broke apart. Underneath Monarch's aircraft, the agents found their equilibrium thrown off as the ground beneath them rose at the same time that their sides found themselves closer to the ground.

"Everyone out of here, the ice won't hold!" shouted someone in the chaos. Everyone unbuckled their harnesses and attempted to escape amidst the window of time that Godzilla gave them.

"I'm stuck!" Mark called out, trapped beneath the wiring and tubing of the transport as Maddie struggled to help. Dr. Graham, upon hearing Mark's cry for help, rushed back in to assist.

**Interloper. I will not forgive this trespass.**

_we care not_

_for petty Earthly concepts_

_as meaningless as forgiveness_

N̷̳̤̬̬̎̿̒͘ö̸̞̆̚ţ̷̥̮͇͈̈̔̒̆ ̸͚̳͗̏̚w̵̧͕̬͓̪͐ḥ̶̖̲̟̽ẹ̴̝͖̭̝̋͠n̸̲͎̍ ̴̯̟̺̝͙͑a̵͇̩̔̅l̷̟̔̇ḽ̴̜̔͜ ̴̧̡̖̩̓̈́͝ş̵̦̫̑͂̋h̶̛̯̘͚͊̍̕̕a̸͇̐̉̉l̸̪̤͌͊̆͝l̶̡̦͛̽͌͝ ̴͇̮͉̯͊̊̇s̶͍̰̹̘̤̓ọ̸͆̓̈͠ơ̵̫̥͖̆̈́ͅn̶͖̭̯͕̋͂̊̈́ ̷̩̄̾b̷͑ͅe̶̛̻̬̪͒̈͂ ̶̟͚͎̩͎̊̋̇͗o̸̤̤͎͛n̵͕̪̣̈́ȇ̸͍͖̼̬̇ ̸̨͈̤̦̄̃̌ẉ̵̛̙̳̟͍i̵̛̹͑́t̷͈͇̕h̷̠͐̎ ̴̢̿͋͆̓n̸̳͈͎̭͖͗̉̚o̴̢̜͍͛̕ť̵̜͂̕ĥ̴̹̭̟̭͕͛̒̇ĩ̴͙̳̱̙̖̓͋͑̾n̶̜̊̿͂g̶̨̘̳̤̭̈́̅ .̷̡͚̩͑͠

**It is past the time for your eviction.**

_come and try, little king._

**I will do more than try.**

Godzilla managed to grapple the right head's jaw and pulled, misbalancing the other two as their body impacted the ground.

"Go, go, go!" Mark yelled, as he finally found himself free. He, Vivienne, and Maddie ran as fast as they could away from the Osprey, only taking half a moment to catch a breath of relief.

**I will do so!**

Godzilla lifted the right head, of whom was pouring forth a stream of Titanic obscenities, then smashed it upon the ice, in a move that a few of the humans noted was similar to those who wrangled with crocodiles and alligators. The move obliterated the ice at last, causing the Osprey transport to fall into a chasm below. Mark, Maddie, and Vivienne ran as fast as their adrenaline could take them.

The right head was very displeased with its treatment.

_I will end you_

_tear you to pieces_

_leave you to -_

Godzilla interrupted the right head with another smash.

_leave you to die_

_in the deathly valley of our shadow -_

Another smash.

**You are more than welcome to try.**

The other two heads, after recovering from the brief disorientation that was Godzilla's brawling, each fired a golden beam, impacting his ribs and causing him to release the right head as he was sent stumbling. The golden monstrosity took the opportunity to right itself in a low stance as it spread its wings wide.

With a mighty beat of its wings did the three-headed beast ascend for a brief moment, using its twin tails to club Godzilla - one tail impacted with a shoulder, the other on his jaw. The golden beast planted both feet on the king's chest and shoved, bowling Godzilla over and knocking him into the crater where Outpost 32 once stood, a brief cry of surprise and shock escaping him as he fell. The tri-headed terror landed, then turned and slithered towards Monarch's scattered agents all stranded in the blizzard's blazing cold.

The central head licked its teeth as it looked at all of them.

_now what to do with you,_

_dear little subjects that believe themselves king_

_of a realm that never belonged to any of you_

_perhaps we should leave nothing behind..._

Ÿ̵̭́̍̈́̿̆e̶̖͌̓̔s̷̢̧̡̟͐,̴͚͛̎ ̵̧̯̺̫̱͠w̸̧̦̏̒̆̆e̴͎̩̝̪̿͂̅͝ ̴̧̨̱̙̔̓͑͝s̷̞̳̉h̶͍͓͛̀a̶̹͇̱̣͂͠ļ̴̹̐̅l̸̻̪̘̗̊̇͌̓̉ ̵̡̖̥̐̍̚l̵̖͓̰̘̒̾̏̐͒ȩ̵̙̯̤̍̽̔ȁ̴̯̘͌͛v̵̼̹̘̈̈́ẻ̶͕͆ ̴̜̋y̷̱͇͋̌o̷͖͇͕̍̊̑͑ͅű̵̡̩̻̘ ̷̼̃̎̃̿͜w̴̬̪̜͚͐́͠͝͝i̶̱̦͖͓̍ͅt̸͕͌̉͝h̸͍̐͌̄̅͠ ̵̪̍̊ņ̵̬͎̤̺̽͗͛o̸̯̦̅̊ͅț̷̾͆͒́h̶̹̥̱͌ī̷̭̤͉n̴̢̛̐̚g̷͇̍!̵͙̰͙͕͛̐́͝͠

̵̝́̂̈́͆̕N̴͎͉̞̚ǫ̵̢̹̲̹̎͆̚͝͠t̸̢̟̤̄̎͊h̷̯̝̙͙̘͆i̶̥̙̇̍́͠n̶̞͓̺͒g̸̖̫͙̞̤͌͋̃͌͘ ̶̠̝̱̼̊b̷̞̄̐͜ṵ̴̫͆̊̚ṯ̷̈̄̊ ̷̡͎͂t̷̊̏̉̄̓͜ḧ̸̨̟́͑ë̴̜͖̖̍̅̈́ ̸̡̛̣̥̮̌͗͒͑p̷̺̊̈́͛̕͠i̵̟̐̈̆͝t̵̳̮͙̭̰̆̈́͐̾ĩ̶͔̤͎͉͜f̶̣̥͌̀͆̾͆ͅȕ̷̖̉̕ĺ̷͜͝ ̶̠̰̃̋̊̈́̉a̴͖̎̄̐̈́ṣ̷̯͂̏̑͂̉ḣ̶̭̩͍̑̆e̴̛̳ş̵̝̲̝̺͘͘ ̷̮̳̒͛̎ő̶̗͓̼̩̪͆f̸͕̳̒̈́̂͝ ̸̪̞̪̎̂̎͌͘ẃ̸͍͓̍h̷͕͍̀̅̿͝a̷̡͔̺t̴̖͚̝͙̊̄ ̶͇̓͆͑r̴͈͕̳̐̎͗ę̵̘̮̖̂͠͠m̸̼͍̤͑̓͜͜a̴͙̒̌͂i̵͚̻̹͕͐n̵͚̯̳̺̱͠s̶̛̥̼͓͍̍̓̕ ̶̝͍̿ő̴̘̟̏f̸̩̖̀͐̚͝ ̴̹̮́͂̎͘͝ẙ̶̹̪͕͒o̶̥̙̍̑͒u̵̯͎͕̯̓̇̈́̊̓ŗ̶͔̫͊͂͠͝ ̶̭̖͌̽s̸̨̪̣̩̔͜o̶̹̍̆̑̉͘r̴̞̘̽̇̒ŕ̶̛͔̽̈́y̷͈͙̟͒ ̷͙̗̼̬̯̎̉l̶̘͐ͅȉ̷̼́ṫ̶̼t̴̟̣̔l̸̢͈͈͉͕͐̋̿̎͝e̶͖͔̗͓͂͋ ̸̭͕̥̊w̵̼̒̐̾͗̕ỏ̴̺̟͕͈͔͂̚͘r̵̛͙̾͊͜͜͠ĺ̷̙̥̐̂̆d̸̫͕̙̦̲͋͊͑̉̕,̵͓̯͇̃̒̊́

̴̘͙͝B̸̹̫̮͍͂ạ̶̧̳̱̻̾̒̅̈́̉r̶̨̝̤̋́̃͝r̶̤̩̘̎e̷͎͠n̴̠̰͕̒̔͝ ̷̘̟͚̓͛̔a̵̼͂n̴͈̠̜̘̮̅̎ḑ̴̭ ̵̢̨͖͈̰͊̌v̷̛̳̌͆ơ̷̺̟̞̱̈́̋̉i̸̪͗̆̿ḍ̶̼͈̀̓̚ ̶̰̩̒͊ȯ̵̡͕̳̳f̸͚̯̄̕ ̷̰̰͈̖̖̉ä̶͚̠̠̱́͘l̶̪͕̠̎̐͑̓̚l̸̰̠͔̾̅͊̉ͅ ̵̡̛̹̝͚̙̋̓͊͝m̶͓̻̼̲͗ͅê̷͓̄͝a̷̢̖͙̮̖̓̔̋̕ǹ̸̪̅ỉ̶̘͔͙ņ̵̫͈̲͋̌g̸̯̭̱̮̒͗̍͆ͅ

̶̤͓̃͐͂̏B̷̬̄͘͘a̷͍̓̍̊r̴̢̼̋̈̓r̴͕͊ę̴̨̫͚͚̐̍͒͌n̶̳̫͋̑̑͠ ̸̤͕̠̄͋̽̒͝a̴͎̟̯͖̞͛̿̎n̷̅͜d̴͇̭͚̪̟̏̔ ̷̾͊̎̈́̓͜v̷͕̠̜̄͆o̴̫̲̒͒͠i̴̱͉̫̯͑d̵̥̖̔̅̂̂ ̸͎̆̈́̽̚̕o̵̫̩͎̓̚f̸̭̱͖̥͇̄ ̶̜̱͚̫̮̒̑̈̚a̸͍͌͂͑l̸͚̺̞͓͙͐͊̇̓̆l̸̺̤͉͛̽͜͠ ̴̠̬̭̰͊͠ú̷̘̞̭̦̆͊ń̸͉͖͜d̶̲͌̑e̶̢̫͔̥̘͗̚ŗ̷̛͑̊s̶̹̣̑͗̚͜t̸̢̡̗̖̝̋͋͐ä̷̡͙̝́̎͜n̶͔̩̦̳̓̃d̸̛̥͍̕í̸͇͓̔ṋ̸͈̪̟̝̈́͌̋͒g̵͉͚͇̿̓ ̶̭͐-̷̗̭̣̖͛̌̃̇ͅ ̶̭̦́

̴̡͕̠̫̥͛Å̸̢̛̯̕͝ ̸̛̣̳̄͋͝r̷͕̮͎̅̾̈́̒́e̵̮̾̓̆̓l̷̬̥̹̮͠i̵͙̻̖̜͔c̸̟̬̩͗͆ ̴͕͎̈́͐͋͝ö̵̝̪̓̈̈f̵̛̮̣̳̭̰̐ ̶̻͔̄̏y̴̭͍̬̮͉̓̿̐͒ơ̸͚̣͍̭͙̄͝u̴̘̺̟͝r̸̨̫͍̺̞͊̽̌̌ ̷̖̗̱͙̫̍m̶̹̮̑̏ȩ̶̌͌a̶̰͙̎̎͛n̸̺̋͐ḭ̴̘̈̍̂͒n̷̼̰̦̜̎́͘̚͜g̴̤͎̩̣͍͊̒͂l̶͙̔̋͐͝ẻ̴͍̗̌̑s̵͕̹͂̾̄͒s̸͖̝͆̈́̈́̇,̴̨͔̹̇ ̸̗̣̟̀̀͛͆b̸̥̋͌y̸̘͍̆͋̈́͛g̶̰̖̾̐̕ȏ̶͇͈̥̪̍̉ñ̶̝̬̱̻͋̅͝e̷͙̊͝ ̷͎̲͓͖̭̈̓̓̓ȅ̸͇̽͝x̷̟͎̺̬̺̊͊ḯ̵̦͈͎͉̃s̸̡̯̮̘͑̂̎̊̋͜t̷̻̮̼͇̞͆͂̆̇̚ë̷̫́̈́̕n̷̰͓̤̲̩͋͐͘͝č̶̫͉̱̰ͅȩ̸͚̝̹͗̌

̸̞̿͆̉̽̈́W̸͇̯̻̃̽̂h̸̞͉̥͕̄̿ę̵̛͎̯̼̲̓r̴̡̭̭̰̊͌̽̅̐ě̶͇̦̘̖̏̒͐ ̸̣͋n̷͓̯͉̹͎͐̀͋͝o̴̫̽͆̍͂͝t̷̛̺̝̙̒͠h̴̻͌̾͠͝i̸̱̗̰̘̊̈́̇n̶̬̪͙̞̓g̵͎͎̜̝͋̊͆̽͝ ̷̲̉̾̍r̶̢͂ȩ̶̨̼̑̍͜m̴̘͎̘̔ͅḁ̵͕̋̅ỉ̸͓̰̈͂̇͘͜ņ̷͙̣̋͝s̸̨̜̯̣͓̐̒̕.̶̢̪̘̜̲̑̋.̵̣͝.̵̢̮̞͍̭̾

̶̡̛͖̏̍N̷̢͕̊̒̄o̸̢͕̭̾̋t̴͕͎̥͖͊̓͝h̵̅̋̎̈́ͅi̶͎͕͆̂ṇ̵̪͑̎̐g̴͉̰̰̃̅,̴͔͔͕͊̆̆̇̿ ̸̨̓̍̾e̷̢͚̰͓͆̔̔x̴̨̪̫̘̼̀̑̕c̸̰̈́̽͑͝ę̵̦̫̄p̶͉̾̉͝ṭ̷̼̪͇͐͊͊ͅ

̶̧͇̝̪͗̃G̶̥̻̞͚̾̿̊̚H̵̬͈̤̑͝I̵̘͗D̸̺͎̮́́Ọ̸̺͚̠͗̅R̷̻̲̞̉A̴̛̯̤͐̄̂͗Ḥ̵̈́̉

Maddie held her head and wept, while Serizawa, Vivienne, and Mark could only hold their heads in agony in the midst of Ghidorah's three voices coiling, _rippling,_ ripping through their very brains, the voices three embracing their minds like a molten ocean of gold.

Serizawa whispered into the wind under his breath, in prayer and plea. "Gojira will maintain the balance of this world."

The central head sauntered over, stopping mere inches before the man, its mouth upturned in a cruel smirk. Ghidorah _chuckled_ in amusement before responding in kind with a harsh whisper of golden tones.

_you speak highly of a lowly king too hard-pressed to stop me_

_he cannot cease the inevitable_

_the unending has no end_

_he cannot stop what has been started -_

A blue beam of laser focus impacted Ghidorah on their right flank, knocking them aside with a sudden cry of surprise. The left head looked over, seeing Godzilla's upper body supported by his forearms as he dragged himself out of the enormous chasm, his spines and eyes aglow with blue fire and fury.

**Our business is unfinished.**

_our business has always remained unfinished_

_no thanks to you_

_and that stupid little frosty prison_

_but for now,_

_we shall finish this_

_another time; another day_

A̷̹̘͎͔͑͒n̵̯͕̤̩̪͌͗͒̈̕o̶̟̱͓͛̅̑͆̿͜t̴̞̳̆h̷̨̢̤̮͈͛ȅ̵̙̣͌̈́̕r̴̼͐̚ ̶͓͖͗̈̐͑́s̸͉̤̬̬̮̈͛n̷̡̡̞̠̆͌ͅa̸̛͔̼̎̌͊̈́c̸̛̩̳͔͂̽̌ͅk̶̦͈̻͑̾͒

No one expected Ghidorah to snap one of its jaws forward, intent on snatching Dr. Serizawa.

Serizawa did not expect for Vivienne Graham to push him away with enough force to send him flying away several feet. She felt nothing; saw nothing, yet she heard every ominous note of a low chant as her world was cut off and disappeared into a chasm of endless, hellish gold.

Serizawa could only helplessly watch as the last few frames of Vivienne's life disappared behind a wall of massive teeth, and golden jaws.

Maddie screamed with agony.

Godzilla snarled as he righted himself, then charged at the golden demise with a frenzied roar, as the shadow of the Argo emerged from beyond the horizon.

**I will not cease until I end you, Interloper!**

A dark, thundering chuckle of three pitches.

C̴̮͚͙̬͆̃̏̇o̶͓̊̏m̴̮͕̲͈̕e̴̥̟̓͆͂ ̵͓̞̤̭̏̉̄̐̔a̶̖͔̫͊͌͐͑̚n̷̨͓̹͆̌͆̽̕d̵̯̤͔̆̓̔̓ ̷̭̣̩͛͜t̶̰͎̖͂r̷͓̗̟̳̭̋͂͂͊̋y̶̼͂̈́͆,̸̜̰͓̐̏͜ ̸̡̧̣̺̉l̴̛͙̣̻̦͙͊̆̕i̴̪̪̗̺͒͂͑t̸͙̓t̶̨̺̬̬̊͛̓l̵̨̰̻̤̐̒̓̅̌e̶͕̠͙̋͗͂ ̶͖̀k̵̫͇̪̔̈́̔ī̶͉̣n̷̙̦̟̩͒g̷̡͆̑͗̓͆.̶͖͑̋̅̉͠

A volley of missiles erupted from the Argo.

A single wingbeat caused several missiles to veer off course, and Mark Russell finds himself on the receiving end of one's explosion after it impacted the ground several feet away from him. He blacked out - his last sight, that of Maddie running towards him in a panic.

\---

_Mark finds himself frantically running in a black space as he looks around frantically, his breath heavy, his face covered in soot. A flashlight shines in his hand as he waves it around, the void gradually filling in and morphing into the flaming wreckage of what was once his neighborhood._

_"Andrew!" he calls out, as Emma holds Maddie close._

_A rumble sounds in the distance._

_"Andrew!" he calls out again. The crackling of flames is the only reply he receives._

_"Andrew!"_

_The echo of an earthquake far too close for comfort sounded off nearby. He glances over, only to see Godzilla's overwhelming frame fill his entire field of vision._

_The king of the monsters roars -_

W̷̭̮̔̈́͂̃̏ë̸́̏̾͌͜ ̶̛͚̹͊̎̓̿a̸̡̮̭̱̱̽̃̉̄r̵̢͓̤͈͊̐͝ȇ̴̞͠ ̴̻͙̟̻̏̈́̒͜͠ṅ̸̩͈͈̜̯̍̍ọ̷͔̅͛̈́͘͜t̸͚̭̾ ̸̛̣̀̉͗͝f̶̧̱̳͙̓̅̈í̶̫͈̱͜n̷̬̳̗̿̈i̶̩̋̉̀͝s̸̘̎h̶̩̦̫͈͘e̸̛͈͈͚̺͊̈́̄d̶̛̫̫̱͒̍͑ ̶̳̼̈́w̷̧̗͙͈̐̎͝i̷̙̲͆̔̔͋͘t̴͔͋ĥ̶̞͈̰̫͑ ̴̨̡͕̬̄y̴̤̖̚ŏ̷̧̝̱̹͙͊̐̆̕ṳ̶̑̈̅̆͑ ̴̥͙̥̈́̆͒͘y̸̞͒ē̵̞t̴̼̔͑͜,̷͉̺̑ ̵͖͈̩̲̇ͅM̴͔̰̰̏͂ḁ̷̰̗̫̮͋̈́̌r̸̖̭͎͇͙̆̀̅̓k̸̼̗͊.̴̧̙̰̦̏̃̓̍

Mark Russell woke with a startled gasp within a hospital bed that felt much more comfortable than it looked. He sat up, leaning back against the headboard and sighed. He took several minutes to regain his bearings as he blinked away the sleep. His eyes found the window, and he watched as golden lightning sparked through the clouds framing what appeared to be three pairs of eyes watching as he drifted by -

_Wait, eyes?_

He shot up from the bed in a panic and trudged over to the window as his chest heaved with breath. _Ah, I must be on the Argo._

He watched the clouds for several minutes uninterrupted, the lightning gone, the eyes nonexistent, until he heard the gentle footsteps of someone smaller than him; he turned around just in time to see his daughter crash into him with a hug. He drew her in and returned it, before taking a look at Maddie.

She had been crying, evidenced by her disheveled hair and tears stains marring her cheeks. _Vivienne..._

"Hey, kiddo, it's going to be alright. I know that things might not look that way right now, but right now I'm assuming we have an international crisis in the making, with Ghidorah free and Godzilla chasing him and all. We have to keep going forward, alright, Maddie?" Maddie nodded, sniffling, as fresh tears fell.

Mark pulled her into a hug again. "It's going to be okay, Maddie. I know we lost Vivienne, and Emma is...well, yeah, but I'm still here," he said, eyes closed. _And I have a lot of time to make up for_ , he thought to himself, tightening his embrace.

Maddie only held onto him tighter.

\---

When Mark and Maddie made their way down together to the command center, they arrived to the sounds of an argument, and to the sights of a bottle of painkillers next to everyone present.

 _Seems like I'm not the only one nursing a killer headache after Antarctica,_ mused Mark.

"I'm telling you, Emma didn't activate that detonator. That's not who she is; she wouldn't do that sort of thing," argued Dr. Coleman, his hand resting on a rather beat-up ORCA.

"And I'm telling you, Sam, that she did. I saw it through my scope," countered Col. Foster.

"Well maybe you saw wrong. Maybe the stress of the situation made you see differently," he tried to argue back. Mark slowly entered everyone's field of view.  
"Mark, maybe you could tell everyone that Emma didn't pull the trigger on the detonator. I know she wouldn't do that."

Mark only sighed, as Maddie turned her head away and made her way to Serizawa.

"Sam, you could be right, that she wouldn't do something as drastic as pulling the detonator," Sam smiled as Mark began, "but I saw her do it myself. Emma was standing right next to those eco-terrorists, and she pulled the trigger. But when she spoke, she didn't sound right at all; it was like she was possessed by a demon. I'm sorry."

Dr. Coleman shrunk down, his smile vanishing in an instant. "Oh."

Maddie repressed a sniffle in front of Serizawa, before she dove in for a hug. "She's gone, Dr. Serizawa. Aunt Vivienne is gone, and mom isn't mom anymore, and Aunt Vivienne was more of a mom than she ever was and now she's gone!" she said in a harsh whisper. Dr. Serizawa held her as Maddie continued mumbling; when he turned his pained gaze to the monitor on the console - _Vivienne Graham - Deceased_ \- he could only drift his eyes towards the floor.

Foster and Sam both looked toward Ilene and Rick. "Do we have any idea of where Godzilla is? He disappeared and hasn't been seen ever since we left Antarctica, and this tropical storm just appeared out of nowhere," said Sam.

"Hollow earth, Chen!" Rick said, earning an eye-roll. "That being said, I don't think our resident big guy exactly follows the same path that we would - oh joy, scans just came back. Turns out that Ghidorah _is_ the hurricane," commented Dr. Stanton, as the monitor display updated, labeling the hurricane formation with a yellow _G-M0_. "Great, just what we need, a hurricane with no eye. No reprieve. Just a storm that keeps on storming," he said, rambling on more for himself.

Mark looked over the world map visual on one of the large monitors. "Dr. Serizawa, which Titan is located at Outpost 56?"

Tearing his gaze from the floor and towards Mark's feet, Serizawa replied in earnest. "Titanus Rodan."

"Ancient civilizations hailed it as the ' _Fire Demon_ ,'" Ilene added.

"Oh, that's wonderful. Maybe it's friendly enough to have us over for some tea," Mark said, his tone marred with sarcasm. "I assume we already have an evacuation effort for that town down there by Isla de Mara? Ghidorah seems to be headed in that general direction," he asked, his finger casually pointing at the screen.

"We are currently working in tandem with world governments to provide an immediate, emergency evacuation of coastal cities, as well as any population centers within a 100-mile radius of a Monarch outpost. We want to reduce collateral as much as we possibly can, wherever we can. That said, at this very moment, we're working on an evacuation effort alongside the Mexican government to get those townspeople out. We have several Osprey on-site to assist, and more are en route to supply a steady stream of evacuees out of the immediate vicinity," said Col. Foster.

"Now the kicker - what makes you so sure that Emma and Jonah are going to wait for any evacuation effort to happen before they attempt to release any of the Titans?"

"What do you mean by that, Mark?" asked Foster.

"Let's address the Titan in the room, then. Every one of us in here heard those two Titans talking. They _spoke_ into our minds, in our language, with intelligence and understanding. Why would they do this now? Have they always been capable of doing so?"

"Mark, not everything can be explained with simple science," replied Ilene, earning a not-so-subtle scoff from Rick. "Oh hush, Rick, you were frightened of Ghidorah's voices in your head just as much as everyone else here."

"And it was something I wish to forget, but I distinctly remember you being the one who passed out, Chen," Rick said, sipping a cup of coffee.

"Tch." She shrugged him off, before returning to Mark. "Nevertheless, for a phenomenon such as this, you would have to look through history to find the answers. The Titans were worshipped, revered - even feared - as gods by ancient civilizations. Surely, over time, some sort of symbiotic mental bond came to be between those humans, and the Titans," Ilene said, as she milled through various historical artworks and texts.

"Maybe, we just learned to listen," said Maddie.

Ilene gave a slight smile. "Yes, in the end, maybe we just learned to listen first."

"Then explain Ghidorah's domineering aspect, when we were only given a nasty headache?" asked Mark.

"Because we are aligned with Gojira," said Serizawa. "And siding with Gojira means we seek balance with nature; as such, our minds are left intact so that we may continue our attempts to maintain equilibrium, whereas the ones aligned with Ghidorah did so because they seek to destroy. We were left with a headache because that is a display of Ghidorah's strength of coercion, despite our siding with Gojira."

"And Ghidorah thanked them by taking away their free will, because all they do is take - take and destroy until nothing is left," said Maddie.

"Does this mean we'll get to see some of that 'Let them fight' action?" inquired Rick.

"Yes, but we'll be a bit busy," said Ilene. "A threat like Ghidorah means every part of nature has a part to play to push them out."

"And humanity has the free will to choose, I take it?" commented Mark. "So, what, we bring the fight to them?"

"We as humans always have the free will to choose," said Ilene, smiling. "The biggest decisions to make are often the simplest ones."

"So yes, we'll get to see the whole 'let them fight' scene, but we also have to take part in it. Great, just what we need. Bagels and bombs for breakfast, and then we meet up with a mad Titan or two for tea, and then some pissed off mind-controlled zombie eco-terrorists to join us just in time for dinner and a movie. This sounds more and more like a SyFy plot with each passing second," said Rick.

"I wish my big decision for today was staying in bed," Sam said to himself.

"One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it," said Rick.

"Boo! You stole that from Kung-Fu Panda," said Maddie, as Ilene smiled in amusement.

"Serizawa, are you on board with all of this? We'll need a consensus," asked Mark.

The man in question looked around the room at the expectant faces, and sighed. "All of you seem to have come to a decision without me. I thank you for considering me, but I can see you wish to side for the sake of balance. Please, far be it from me to actually stop you; if anything, I have sided with you."

Serizawa stood, and made his way out of the Argo's command center. "Excuse me, please. And do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any updates." Mark nodded.

No sooner when Serizawa had already disappeared down the hall, did a system alert unexpectedly blare to life.

"What's the situation, Colonel?" asked Mark.

"We have a security breach in our systems. I think it might be Jonah and Emma trying to release one of the Titans, but which one they're trying to release and from where, I have no idea."

"Can we get a triangulation done?" asked Rick.

"Their location is too far remote; we can't get a proper trace in," said Sam, a perplexed expression on his face while he scratched his left temple. "I can at the very least boot them out from our systems manually," he added, typing a flurry of inputs at one of the command consoles.

"How could they even wake up a Titan if they don't have the ORCA?" asked Rick.

"Ghidorah held an ancient, long-standing rivalry with Godzilla for just about the entirety of written history, and even before, if some cave paintings are anything to go by," said Ilene. "It wouldn't be too far to guess that Ghidorah held a status as a rival alpha vying for control. Perhaps a broadcasting of a rival Alpha signal of some kind? I would assume that since Ghidorah took over a few dozen humans, then they could probably even broadcast their Alpha call via proxy, and with a higher rate of precision."

"My original point still stands," began Mark. "What makes you all think that Ghidorah, and their little army of mind-numbed eco-terrorists will wait for an evacuation to actually happen? If anything, it will be a prime moment for them to strike - with everyone gathered in one place attempting to flee."

"Hey guys, I think I know which one they went for," interjected Maddie, pointing at a monitor currently displaying the news.

**Breaking News LIVE**

**Isla de Mara Volcano Erupts:**

**A Monster Borne of Hell?**

And staring straight at the camera, with intelligent, hawk-like eyes upon a great Pteranodon frame covered in hardened, molten skin of a volcanic texture, was none other than a very annoyed _Titanus Rodan._

_**Who in the FUCK woke me up?** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writer's block, plus lack of motivation, plus stress, prevented me from updating, and I'm sorry about that. That said, what I originally planned as one chapter, had to be split into two. After some thought, I decided that the middle point of my original plan fit better as a chapter break.  
> I can only hope this is enough until my next update. I promise that everyone's favorite Angry Bird will appear in Part 2.
> 
> For the most part, we will be following the general events of KotM, but with some key differences and some alterations, and of course, talking Titans.  
> I hope you all come to enjoy the ride.


	8. Ballad of Ice and Fire, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it ended in a lake of fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2, let's go.

_**Who in the FUCK woke me up?** _

\---

_Monarch Bunker, Undisclosed Location Outside of Boston, MA_

Alan Jonah did his best to ignore his gathered mercenaries, plus one Emma Russell, as they all stood in their makeshift command center, droning on and on in a haunting melody that sounded familiarly foreign to his ears; in a flawless unison into a single microphone that he had set up in the center of the room. All it had taken was a few simple hacks, and he was connected to the speaker system that laid just atop Outpost 56, a flawless step conducted for the sake of broadcasting Ghidorah's alpha call to release the Titan housed within the volcanic outpost.

"N̸͕a̵̡̪̅̽̒ͅu̶̢͍̦̾̓̈́ḡ̸̨͎͍̒͑ȟ̶̦ẗ̷̪́ ̵̢̛͖b̶̠͇̌u̵͌͜ţ̵͉̓͘ ̶̦̝̬̿͝a̸͇̐͊ ̸̙̟̍̇̐p̸̞̥̍͒r̸̼̭̘̀̈́o̶̺̪̒̈́͠x̸͓̣̖̐̃y̴̹̖̆̓," Ghidorah had said to him a few minutes prior, their three voices melding with, _through_ , Emma's voice.

Even as a hardened eco-terrorist that experienced horrors whilst in MI6, he could not hold back the shudder of just how wrong it felt to hear everyone's voices being overlapped by Ghidorah's. It felt as if everyone he worked with was voided, crossed out. _Hollowed._

He could only equate it to scooping out the core of an avocado and trying to put three, entirely too large scoops of peanut butter in it.

And despite being surrounded by so many, and being allied with an alpha Titan that could finally realize his ambitions, he had never before felt so alone.

Not when he felt like he was being shrouded by so many golden shadows.

_it has begun_

_your target will awaken shortly_

_angry bird will be angry_

_all part of the plan_

_a part of the larger plan, yes_

Jonah kept wondering why Ghidorah wanted Rodan out early, but when the Golden Demise brought up how "ḩ̴̳̤̈̈́͗͗͠a̴̛͇͎̿̍v̵̥̫̬̎ì̴̗̘̫͘n̵͖̺̮̙͝g̶̺͍̠̝̠͆̍ ̷̘̖̬͍̬̆̀a̷̯͑ ̷̦̅͆͑̽̒v̷̠̲̾ȁ̵̼̫͠n̵̞̠͋͊̚͠g̴̯͚͂̚ụ̷̺̥̾̆͠a̴͓̞͔̝̒̄́ŗ̷̝͈̙͋̊̊ͅd̴̪͖̘͚̆̉̃̊̎ ̷͖͉͋͑͂ͅo̷̝̞̓̍̿͑̚u̴͖͖̥̗̓̒̎̕t̵̤͙̂ ̵̨̬̂̄̉͜ẽ̴̘̗̠͕͂͆a̵͈͗ŗ̷̳̹̝̯͛͛l̵̼̈́̒̽͒͝y̵̢̥̱̗̏͆̈́͜ ̴̩̳̾́ͅẁ̷̭i̵͚̰̻̮̿ͅl̷̤̱̓͝l̴̝͉̺̪̦̃́̕ ̵̬̜̟̐h̶̭̘̠͕͒͗̔̑͜ą̵̭͋̿̈͒͠s̵͉̑̿̚t̶̪̏̐e̴͍͖̠͐̓̃ṉ̷͓̤͗͛ ̴̱͎̪̈́̏ͅt̶̜́ẖ̵̨̰͍̫͐̉͊̐ę̶̞̿̉̆́ͅ ̵̮̘̾̀̾̐̚p̶̰̒̐r̷̼͑̾̅ő̴͎̻̮͒ͅc̷̛͔̠̆ĕ̴̡̟̓͆s̵͎̩̪̬͍̃̽s̷̥̺͊̄͑͆͝ ̷̻̊̓̍̎͋a̸̞͈̎̐̓s̴̮̉̈́̿̄ ̶̣̔̿͌̓ņ̶͚̩͠è̷͔͖̱̑̈́̃̀č̷͎̫̲͇̮̾e̸̜̖̖̥͛s̸̗̪̖̿s̵̡̹̩̲̾̇ã̶̢̯̹̺͒̉͠r̶͔̰̒y̴͉̠̞͛̀" he did not dare question an eons-old, three-headed monstrosity.

Inadvertently being in a Titan's way was already a quick way to die, but to intentionally offend one as cruelly intelligent and hostile as Ghidorah, however?

Like watching your own funeral.

Rodan's infuriated cry echoed through the news report. He couldn't help but sigh.

\---

Everyone aboard the Argo scrambled to their respective stations, and within the command center was there no exception, as a flurry of motion took place, with everyone taking their respective seats.

Dr. Serizawa's seat, however, remained painfully unoccupied.

"Get us to Isla de Mara, stat! We need to be there five minutes ago!" Col. Foster said to the pilots, Dr. Stanton snorted in amusement.

"Mark, Rodan is not happy!" said Ilene.

"I know, I heard!" said Mark.

"Is it just me or did everybody in here just hear Rodan talk in our heads?" asked Sam.

"Sam, were you _deaf_ back in Antarctica when Godzilla and Ghidorah talked to all of us? This situation is even worse because a Titan just spoke through live news! Everybody heard it! This is bad!" said Rick.

"What's so bad about a talking Titan? It shows that they can be communicated with - that they have sentience, and possibly even high capacity for thought and logic," quipped Ilene. _The only bad thing is that Rodan is currently angry about something,_ went unsaid, implied.

"And the first impression of that was of Rodan cussing on live television!" countered Rick. "Think of all the children at home, geez!"

Maddie chuckled. "Hey, don't feel bad; I cuss every time I accidentally burn breakfast," she said.

"I'm going to assume that happened everyday, then," Mark commented.

"Yep!"

"Maddie, that- that doesn't really make me feel any better about things." Maddie merely stuck her tongue out.

"ETA two minutes until we reach Isla de Mara! Weather is clear straight to the horizon so we'll have a visual on Titanus Rodan in approximately fifteen seconds!" said Foster.

"Ghidorah is en route, coming in from the Atlantic; they'll be in the area within the next several minutes," said Rick.

"Should we try to lure Rodan in to try and fend off Ghidorah?" Sam inquired.

"No, Rodan isn't moving away from the volcano right now. I don't want to think about what will happen if he flies over that town in an attempt to follow us," said Mark.

"Our system shows a recorded wingspan measuring in at 871 feet. The wind shear from that will be like an atomic bomb to everything underneath him," Ilene said, serving to explain.

"No lure unless absolutely necessary, then, got it."

"No, Sam; no lure if we can help it, period," said Col. Foster.

"Visual on Rodan!" shouted Rick.

And like a bomb, a wave of red washed over everyone, followed by a scream that reverberated through their bones.

\---

Rodan watched a flying contraption that held itself up with two oddly-positioned wings, and with his hawk-like vision, saw multiple humans within. After a moment of contemplation and shaking off the last remnants of his sleep, he stared at the two particular humans of whom were looking at him, and spoke simply, unaware of the possible implications of modern news-broadcasting technology.

_**All I fucking wanted was to sleep in peace, to be left alone.**_

_**Just simple isolation with a damn lava bath away from fuck all.** _

_**Is it too much to ask for just a few fucking eons of naptime?** _

_**Entertain me a single, damn moment,**_

_**and help me answer a simple question -** _

_**Who in the FUCK woke me up?**_

Rodan paused for a moment then looked around, slightly curious, when he heard a low, foggy drone reverberate through the air, the sounds cutting through the waves like sickly blades.

A powerful screech tore through the skies with Rodan's shout.

_**Usurper! Interloper! How fucking dare you encroach upon our Alpha's lands once more!**_

_**How fucking dare you wake me up!** _

Yet Ghidorah paid the flaming Titan's loudness little mind.

_and you think to stop us_

_with that filthy mouth of yours_

_we will reduce your will to ashes_

_your insults mean so little to our plan_

_we have much use for one like you_

_we will bend you_

_and the rest of your kin_

_to our golden design_

Y̸̢̢̹̝o̴̧̯̬̲͋͝u̷͈͑͌̉̾ ̷̘̈́͘w̷̦̻͆̈́͆̓̒ị̵̧̥̪̥͗͆͝ḽ̸̀̅̔̕ḽ̷̮͂̐͒̈̆ ̸̹͍͈̿͛̀ã̷̠͓̙̝l̶̠͖̟̖͒̆̎́̅l̷̨͚͓̰̜͑̒͆̓͠ ̶̧̝͍̌͋̄͝b̷̖̻̲͋̄o̴̺̽̍ẅ̷̪́̌͋̋̽ ̶̱͋̇d̷͚͙̖̓̃o̵̡̲͖͚̽̅̆͜w̸̘̥̞̥̰̓̀͘n̵̺͓̅̚͝ ̸̨͍̯̳̐͒̒ī̸͎͇̇́n̶̞̔̃͑̕ ̸̼̲͈̻̊̆͋͘͝t̵̯̝̗̘͋̃ḧ̴̲̹̜́͑̓͆͘e̷̞͂ ̸͚̱̜̩̍̈͗å̷̛̼̭̚ș̵̠͗̈́̍̊͜ȟ̴̙̍͝͝e̶̫͈͌̀͊s̸͍̫̬̑͌ ̷̢̹͈̻͓̑ǒ̵͙̺̬̓̿̂͒f̸̟͇̪̭̓̈́̋̆͘ͅ ̷̞̉̀̒͒t̸̲͇͉̬̻̀ḣ̸̨̛͙̖͆ị̵̽̓s̴͕̭̟̞̋͂ ̵̭̕w̸͔̝͖͎͌̽̆̾ͅǒ̷̢̡̨̯̓͂̑͘ͅr̸͕̬̩̈́̐ľ̵͕͕͇̟͛͜ḓ̶̱̌

Ÿ̶̢̢͍̞̲͠o̸͈͒u̵̮̙̳̇̈́̔ ̴̠̱͍̌ͅw̷̲̭̟̑̊̾i̸̻̲̓͑̾̐̈́͜l̴̮͚̻̙̈͊̕l̷͓̝͕͖̺̽͂͋̚ ̷̗̘̃̈́k̵͚̘̭̤̄n̴̹̗̪̠̏e̷͈̙̙͓͇̕ę̸̭̑͌l̴͇͇̕͠͝ ̴̧̥͓̦̼̈́̾̏b̶̢͇͖͑̑͝ę̷͔̥̾f̵̺̤̹͘ö̶̡͎̮́̌͗̈́ͅr̸̛͈̘̫̓̊̚e̴̼̔͒̕ ̴̣̗̃y̵͎̞̤̑̾͐̚õ̸̦̞͕u̶̢̦̹͐̈r̷̪͌̔̾͘ ̵̜̲͒k̷̨̫̗̐̀i̵̝͍͔̱̅͌̄̾̓ń̸̝͕͍̳̲̀g̶͉̿ ̴͚̇́̔i̷̢̖̬̜̒̈́n̶̦͚̱̏̒͆ ̸̢̣̪̹̊ÿ̷̹́̈́e̶͇͉̗̤̒̌l̴̫̳̈ͅl̸̥̓̾̇͐̈́o̵̤̺̯̭̜͊̎́w̵̨̝̩̳̱͘

_**Oh piss off, Three-Brain!**_ Rodan commented, as he turned his gaze upon the town. A town now filled with people screaming and flailing after Rodan's powerful resonance had boomed within everyone's heads.

_**Still so small, yet still so loud, even after all these years.** _

_**Hello,**_ ** _humans!_ **Rodan squawked, wings flared high with an oddly uncharacteristic amount of enthusiasm.

 _What a shift in tone,_ everyone aboard the Argo noted, once the wave of red died down to a simple warmth, the screaming within their heads reduced to nothing more than a mere whisper.

Mark, Maddie, and Ilene got their bearings together the quickest, after Rodan's initial overwhelming presence. "We need to get the civilians evacuated now before the situation escalates any further," said Mark, still clutching the side of his head.

"Guys, the situation just escalated further!" yelled Rick not a beat later, one hand pointing out towards the horizon, the other clutching his temple.

Out upon the waters deep, a roiling, hellish maelstrom of black clouds and golden arcs of lightning blanketed the sky's horizon with an unabated, chaotic darkness. Winds as sharp as a forest of swords whipped and chopped the ocean into a fury, as entire boat crews were caught unaware, several yachts caught beneath the waves and shredded by the winds, while a few fishing vessels managed to survive despite being briefly swallowed by the dark, stormed waters.

Within the heart of a towering cloud, the silhouette of a golden hydra casually beating its wings was clear to see when the lightning lit the skies. Sam gulped at the bone-chilling sight.

"What's the status on the evacuation?" Col. Foster asked Barnes over the radio.

A few seconds passed. " _Everyone_ _took a big hit with that strange wave that Rodan sent out earlier,"_ Barnes replied. _"We're a bit more behind than I'd like, and we still have far too many people on the ground. Lots of headaches everywhere."_

"We need all evacuation personnel off the ground in less than three minutes. We have a confirmed visual of Ghidorah approaching your location. I repeat, we have a confirmed visual of Ghidorah approaching your location," said Foster.

 _"Shit,"_ Barnes replied, at last looking out towards the horizon amidst the high-stress environment. _"Copy that, colonel. Requesting midair boarding on the Argo with this round of evacuees."_

"Granted. Round your final evacuees, then proceed with protocol and await for further instructions."

_"Copy that, we'll be at your location ASAY."_

Sam quirked an eyebrow.

"As Soon As Yesterday. He'll be in the air in as little as two minutes," said Col. Foster. Sam simply nodded in response as his mouth formed an 'Ah' expression.

"What about the rest of the townspeople?" asked Maddie.

"We can only hope that our efforts from here on out will prevent us from having to seriously consider the ramifications of that question," Foster replied.

Ilene walked over to the window and looked out, her eyes falling on Rodan. She took in a breath, slowly let it out, then closed her eyes in focus.

_Rodan?_

A curious Rodan heard the tickling of a tiny, serene voice in the back of his mind. He turned, spotting an incoming flying contraption of somewhat impressive size. He could feel it - that oddly familiar sensation, a heavenly warmth, yet dampened considerably, almost like half was missing -

 ** _Ha ha! A child of Mothra!_** boomed Rodan into Ilene's mind, his voice like a roiling inferno within the vastness of the space that was their for-now connected minds. _**What may I do to serve the will of the Queen, She who bears my Alpha's Eyes?**_

Ilene took a moment to adjust, as her mind acclimated to his now-cooling, almost coal-like warmth of presence.

_Rodan, Ghidorah is coming, and we do not know where Godzilla is. We must evacuate and defend those of whom we can, down there by your home; will you be willing to fend off Ghidorah for a time while we try to get those who are trapped and defenseless out of the way?_

_**Dear child of Mothra, how kind you are, to care for those who don't know a single damn thing about you.** _

_**But I know your resolve, for you are a child of my Queen.** _

_**You may not know a damn thing yet, but understand -** _

_**You, your sister, and our Queen are far more linked than you believe,** _

_**for the Queen influences those close to her with grace and kindness,** _

_**just as her children influence her with empathy, understanding,** _

_**and the will to choose the right thing, despite what others may say otherwise.** _

From his perch atop the volcano, Rodan looked into the window of the Argo, and managed to lock eyes with Ilene.

_**I will assist in this rather shitty endeavor, if only because there is no avoiding that damn Three-Brains.**_

With a great flourish, Rodan spread his mighty igneous wings -

"Rodan is about to move! Maintain visual!" said Col. Foster -

\- and disappeared into the sky with a great and thunderous _**CRACK**_.

The waves of the bay below churned, spurring forth a great wave that mercifully ended just barely past the reaches of the shore.

"I need visuals on Rodan! All eyes on the sky!"

"No need. Rodan is here," Ilene said reverently, her eyes never having left the outside view. Behind her, the Monarch agents watched in shock as Rodan appeared before the cockpit, an oddly smug grin somehow plastered on his face.

"Hey, Colonel, I have visual on Rodan," remarked Rick, stealing a sip from his coffee mug.

_**Come, daughter of Mothra, lead me to that three-headed dipshit.** _

_**Let me show you that a hydra's three heads aren't always better than one!** _

"How did you do this without the entire town getting obliterated by Rodan's wings, Ilene?" asked Foster.

"Titans are surprisingly acquiescent to requests when the situation is dire, and when you ask nicely," Ilene replied. "He also flew high enough to avoid any collateral damage."

"Ghidorah's ETA - fifteen seconds and counting!" Mark said with a hint of panic as the sky's horizon began to considerably darken, as thunder ominously accompanied swathes of oddly yellow-tinted bolt of lightning.

 _"Requesting permission to board!"_ Barnes suddenly shouted over the radio.

"Your timing is impeccable! You had permission to board granted thirty seconds ago!" Foster said in response.

_"Alright alright I'm hurrying u- YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUCKIN' KIDDIN' ME-"_

"Visual on Ghidorah!" said Mark, as swirling storm clouds filled everyone's view of a slowly approaching horizon with an illuminated, hellish darkness. No one missed how three pairs of eyes glared at them with gleeful malice through the clouded hellscape. For a moment, no one remembered how to speak.

"Hurry up and get in the damn Argo, Barnes! We don't have all day!"

_dear, sweet, insignificant earthly children_

_and dear little Madison and her father_

_you have defied us for far too long_

_and so you shall leave in pieces_

_whether it be your mind or body_

_we will leave only tatters_

_mere scraps left to wave in the valley of the death we shall leave behind_

Ilene looked at Rodan with a look of concern on her face, and to her surprise, the Titan _nodded_ in understanding.

_**I understand, daughter of Mothra. I will lead the charge and give you time to gather together those of whom need your protection.**_

_**Now if only our damn Alpha can stop being so fucking tardy every damn day, that would be nice!**_

Rodan turned, barreling towards the darkening horizon, towards the golden demon, before a sharp ascent, traveling high - higher - above the damning storm that the Golden Demise birthed. The fiery Titan saw a central swirl, a ceaseless motion that lay in the heart of the entire maelstrom.

Rodan tucked in his wings, angled himself towards the center, and dove with an unmatched speed. He could not help but smirk when he heard a tri-pitched grunt of surprise once his blazing frame crashed into the great, golden shadow.

_**Burn, return to the ash that spawned your twin-tailed ass, demon!** _

_poor deluded Rodan_

_you fail to realize_

_demons thrive in hell's fire_

_we are not a mere shade_

_of the universe gone by_

_but its destroyer_

_we shall unmake this pathetic plane of existence_

W̵̬̪̗̹͔̊̒̿e̶̛͇̤̤̙͜ ̸̝̬̍̈a̴̲̬͖̼̝̎͒͐͋r̸̡̰̗͓̈́̕͝ẹ̷̭͖͍̩̿͂̑ ̴͚̓̽ͅẗ̶̩̻͉̑͌͊̈h̶͔̤̥̲̪͋ḛ̷̛̯͔͆̈́ ̴̗̳̃̐s̴͔h̵̨̼̻͖̑͒̽ǎ̵̪͙͉ď̴̖̣̰͖̈́́̑̚͜o̵̠̫̞͐͌͆̑͊ŵ̵̨͕̤̰̯͒̏ ̶̡̢͂͑͌o̴̱̝̰͆̆̈́̉͠f̴̡̟̭̻̺̔͐͋ ̴͕͌͆͒͒̐t̶͈̖͆h̵̠̐̈́̾͛̎e̵̪͎̺̱͆͗̀̇͗ͅ ̶̞͑v̴̙̞̇́͜͝o̵̻̟̱̦̒̐͠i̷͕̭̟̖̿̊͘d̵̰͉̬͈̓ ̸̙͎̅̊͊͋t̷͍̳̪͎̅͂h̸̳́ă̶̭̲̼͓̒̕t̴̮̳̬̄ ̶̞̥̳̇̾s̴̢̭̖̫͊p̴̮͇͚͔͝ͅa̷͙̟͊̋̄ẇ̶̙̭̑́n̵̛̝̏͊͒ȅ̴̼̘͐̑͐͘d̵̢̢̙͉̗̋ ̷͈̞̱̪̉̀̔ͅt̶̹͒h̸̙͋̌͋̈́̕ȋ̸̬͔͚̖̇͋̊̕ș̴̦̜́̈́̈̔͠ ̵̣̗̍͝p̵̡̼̟̯̑a̷̧̻̩͑̃͘͠͝t̷͙̱͍͕̞͊ȟ̷̢͙͇̯̊ę̷͖̝̲͓̍ṯ̶̔͒͑͝͝i̸̟̘͔̺̭̋̃̕c̵̻̅͝ ̶̻̑͑͘u̶̺̓̃ͅn̵̙̮̍ȉ̵̳̱̠͔̳̎v̴̢̿̈͒e̶̜͙͘r̶̗̮̈́̑͜s̶̠̞̍̃̽͘e̴̞̓̋͒̒̅

W̵̨̱̖̦͂̉̚e̴͙͙̣̖̰̾̂̏͐̃ ̷̘̮̫̈́w̷̪̹̖̹͍͑͠i̴̬̭̹͝l̵͚̰̥̘̉̾̂̽ļ̵̳̭͉̤͗͆̈́́ ̶̝̈́͒͠ṙ̴̮͔̓ͅë̶̛̘̣̗́ͅt̶̺̰̆̔ȗ̸͕̘̮͔r̶̟̔̾̽̏n̸͙̬̚͝ ̵͔̻̋̀̏̕t̶̡̬̻̳̚h̶̡͉͌͂̒̉̎i̶̥͒̍s̵͉͊ ̴͕͇͉̀͜͝ͅv̴̙͆a̴͚̔̉̒͠s̴̘̒̋͋t̸̝̪̞̂̈́̓́ ̴̫͉̉̽̈̒͝c̵̢̘̜̮̯̈͗a̶͋̊̇̚ͅń̵̳͕̲̼͛̚͝v̸̙̮̓̌å̶̘̮̓͑͘ṣ̷͉̭̰̂̏̇̓ ̴̯͒̈͒t̸̢͔͉̟͍̑̔ò̵͚̫̝̯͛̏̎ ̸̨̛̗͉̈́̄̍̅t̶̻̿ẖ̶̢͚̞̖̏e̵̥̜̝͑̾̚ ̷͇̦̮̤̏͊̈̔v̵̞̘̏̌̀̈́̒o̸͇̘̭̹͈̿i̷̛̥͗̈́͋̈d̴̤͍̈͛̅̄̏ ̸̨̧̣͎͕̈́̋̌͝͠i̸̝̺͓̾ṯ̵͗͛͋̓̏ ̴̛͕̫̲̗̊̈̚t̶͖̅r̵̨̖͍̘͑ì̴͍͙͓̠̋̆e̵͇̾̚͠d̷̢̻̭͐ͅ ̴̠̗̠͋ţ̸̢͔̙̥̽̈́o̴̗̓͛͛͛̕ ̸̹̲̀̊̈́͋f̶̛̗͖̠̟̍̀̕l̵̨̮̓̄͝e̷̢̛̿́̈e̵̜͖͓̞͊ ̶̧͈̙͕̯̅͒̈f̴̩̻̓͂͘r̵̝̰̊o̴̢̭̗̙͊̓̀m̵͂̑͜

W̶̺͇̞̎̀̿̎e̴̗͚̟̭̾ ̷̳̪̊̈̍a̶͔͌r̶̡̖̬̠̫̚͘͝ë̶̫̲́ ̶͉͕͔͍̉̿̽t̶̟͌̈́̊͒͝ĥ̷ͅe̶̞̿̈͝ ̷̥͙̥̦̑̈́̌͊v̵̨̨̻̟͈̽͒̓o̵̤̠̠͆̉̾̐̓i̶̙͖͔̗̋d̷̺̠̠͈͋ ̴̧̌͊̐t̸͖̞̰̫̃̾h̸̛͓̜̑̈̿͛ͅa̸̡͛̈́̓͊͝t̴̨̫̝͆́̒͆ ̵̺̙͙̇̔͠ͅw̴̧̡̗̐̈̔ĭ̴̧͈̹̬̲̏̈́͋͆l̵̟͂l̴͕̻͖͙̬͝ ̷̻̝̋r̶̥̅͋e̸̝̽̄t̷̩̬̐̇̑̅̋ͅù̶͈̝̬̄͋r̵͙̙̞̫̍ņ̶̹̟͘ ̵̝̹͝ť̴̢͉h̸͖͈͌̆͂̊̚i̵͍͝s̷̨͙͎̳̍͊ ̴͉̞͔͗̊͝p̸͔̙͈̋̃̏̽̃ą̴̖͝t̶͇̤̳͌̃h̶̪͖͚̠̐͐ě̶̞̹ẗ̷̖͈̰͙̻̈͗i̶͇̋̽c̸̦̔̉̈͑̃͜ ̶̠̬͖̿s̸̯̼̦̃͌t̴̗̜̽â̸̝̌͝t̴̩͓̾ě̶̟̠̻͇͙͂͝ ̷̱̜̭͓̿͜o̷̲̻͋̇̈́͜͜͠ͅf̵̳̜̃̈͊̌ ̷̧̨̱̟͉̋̎̌ȁ̶̤͔̜͛ͅ ̵̢̪̩̩̒́̇͠ų̶̻̓̈́́n̶͚̲̯̜̙̎͂í̵̠̼̬͇͚̀v̵̧͇̭͉̇ė̴̢̪r̴͇̞̥̫̰̈́͗͑͠͝s̶̠̽̈́ȩ̵̛͚͉̟̓̇̓ ̵̥̖̱͇̑ṫ̶̗̪̟o̶̗̲͑ ̴̡̹̰̩̊͗̍̿ṫ̶̼̫̞̖͑̚͝͠h̸̢̧̼̞͑̄̐͐̀e̶̻̼̙̒ ̷͙̂̔̆͛b̷̞͓̞͖̣͂̽ḷ̷̫̬̉ͅa̶͖̩̥͗̽͋̓n̵͖̖̈̆k̶̡̡̺̣̗̍͆͌͠ ̴̧̹̱́͠s̵̻̰͈͕̫̉̿̀̚ĺ̴͓̠̓͘ȃ̶̛̗̐͘ț̵͊͠͝e̴͓̼̥̿̃̅͒̉ ̵̩͗͗̔̍i̶̺͔̬͗t̵̰̤̄̓́ ̴͖̯͓̳̀́̊̽̒ō̵͖n̷̪̱͇̈c̸̟̼͉̯͆̋̊ȇ̷̡̱̗͓ͅ ̴̰̱̘̮̰̈́͘w̵̫̫̪̩̎a̵̯͇̤̫͇̋̈́͒͝͝ṡ̶̗̏̇̾́

**_Make up your mind, dipshit!_ **

**_Are you the shadow of the void, the void itself, or the one to bring us there?_ **

**_Because you just sound like a child nursing such pitiful delusions of grandeur!_ **

Rodan flew back a tad, then re-engaged, slamming into Ghidorah's torso with all the force of a blazing meteor - a blow that the golden demise took as if it were naught but an inconvenience.

Ghidorah responded in kind, their three jaws snapping wherever they could find purchase. The left head managed to snag one of Rodan's wings; before the fiery Titan could pull it free, the right head snapped the opposite wing in its jaws.

Rodan felt the wind, and using the golden demon's momentum against them, committed to an aerial spin. He watched as the abrupt change in motion caught all three heads off guard, as his movement caused the outer two heads to twist about and nearly in a knot around each other as he wrenched his wings free.

Now free, he rose in elevation just a tad, and stamped a hind claw down upon the middle head's crown.

_insolent little fire_

_you will submit to our call_

_bow before our will_

_or you serve us no purpose_

_in our divine entropy -_

_**Fuck your chaotic bullshit!** _

Rodan swooped in with fervor, his fiery aura licking at Ghidorah's golden scales as sparks of gold lightning flew every which way. After several seconds struggling, the left and right heads managed to untangle themselves from each other's necks, whereupon they renewed their assault with vigor. All the while, flashes of lightning incessantly struck at Rodan.

_**Do not think I will take your bullshit lying down, damn Interloper.**_

_"Colonel, we're on board now."_

"Fucking finally. I need you and Griffin up here at the command center, stat."

_"Copy that, on our way."_

_**Watch out, daughter of Mothra!** _

Ilene looked out, her spine instantly frozen at the sight. Sam followed her gaze; his jaw dropping at the realization of what they were seeing.

It was just as Rodan backed off to disengage.

They were close, oh so close - less than two hundred feet away, those three pairs of eyes were, gazing into the Argo with an otherworldly malice as vast swathes of golden lightning sparked intermittently, showcasing a terrible, beautiful abyss dwelling within their collective gaze as the skies flickered between two dichotomies - the devil's gold, and the abyss of space. 

They were a drake of unimaginable proportions, wearing a shade of gold so tantalizingly forbidden it could bring entire civilizations to their knees.

And Ghidorah knew it. They knew they could raze the world over with but a wingbeat, their maelstrom an instrument of judgment, of execution. Armageddon.

And so they gazed into the tiny windows of the insignificant human ship, and peered into the souls of all of whom were transfixed by their horrible, hellish gaze. And in an act of condescension, they _smiled;_ the left head with its morbid curiosity, the right with a brutish smugness. The middle, with an utmost sadistic savagery.

Everyone wanted to scream, but found their voices gone, when Ghidorah's wings flapped but once, their body flaring up to show their entire, terrifying frame - that of an avatar of all-encompassing destruction and devastation. An ominous laugh scoured the air, as the dark gold of their leathery wings blotted out the light, and substituted their own golden brightness.

The low drone of a sutra all but pierced the silent veil.

Y̴̘̠̋͆̈͝o̸͈͉̓͘ͅͅu̶͓͆͐ ̴̢̜̣̤̇c̵̢̱̫̯̆ã̵̩͈̃ͅm̴̜͔͚̗̈́̇͛̋e̷͚͔̓̽̋ ̶͉̖͔̚w̸̖̬̞̅͛̏ị̷͓̺̀̇l̴̫͎͕̰͋̔̇l̴̦̩̰̿͂í̴͔̰͘ͅṋ̶͙̱͈̒̿g̵̱̠̘͐̿̽̏l̷͓͗͋͝y̸̤͖̺̾̐ͅ,̶̤̪̄ ̸̧͓̅̊̂̃ḩ̴͇̱̓͜ô̵̧̐̾ẅ̴́̚͜ ̵̭̝̫͠k̸̡̙͔͉̓ị̵͔̃̑̈́͌͜ṇ̵͒d̴̠̳̿̋ ̵̯̰̑̓̈́ọ̷̡͉͇͑͛f̴͉̭̖̕ ̶̻̩͕͐̅y̸̥̜̜͐ǫ̴̥̥̐͆ü̷̗͓͂͘ ̶͙̈́ẗ̵͉͙́̊ǒ̴̲͙͠ ̵̣̳͌s̸͑̅̃̕͜a̷͙̟̱͋v̸̫̪̿͘ë̶̲̭̋̍ ̴̤͙̗̒̏̐̆t̶̺͜h̸͍̹͝ẽ̷̖̤̄̑ ̴̺͉͝ͅt̸̲̝̩̤͝r̸̛̺͋̊o̵̲͔̯̎ų̶̯̦̤̕b̷̢͖̳̪͒ľ̵͉̲̋̈́e̷̬͖̔̿

W̷̺̯̫̆̔͠i̵̝̯̥̔̈́͑l̸̢͔̝̓̈́͘l̸̻̔͗̿ ̸̜͙͑͗̈́ͅy̴̹̮̿̆o̸̮̱̝͊͐͠ů̶̹̻̃͜ ̷̛͉͉̐̾ą̵̙̭͋͂ț̵̣͋ ̶͓̜̋́ͅl̶̠͚͉͛a̶̧̙̰͗s̷͇̾t̶̮̙͌ ̸̢̡̬̉̊ë̸̪́̆m̸̮͒b̴̡̐̓̕r̷̰̎̾ạ̸͛̑͜c̶͈͖̭̅̐̅ȩ̸͙̌͜ ̴͔͕̥̈̉̚o̵̱͆ȕ̸̻r̵̡͙͝ ̷̱̍̈d̷̙͒e̴͔͒s̷̡̼̍ć̸̹̣̞͆̑e̸̡̿ň̵̖̙͋̋t̵͙̉͆ ̶̧̳̅͝i̷̧̩͌̈̿n̶̗̓͛t̶̛̻̦̞͝o̷̭͉̤͛͂̾ ̷̖͎̰̔̈́ȅ̸͖͠n̵̞̹̬̆̒l̷̠̥̯͊ǐ̸̡̟̗͋g̸̻̱͇͑́͒h̸̡̔̃̊t̶̖̾ͅe̴͋ͅn̴̬͚̊̽͌m̶̤͒e̶̯̍̐ṉ̸͖͓͘ț̸̄?̶̫̰͝

"I REFUSE YOU, GHIDORAH!" shouted Maddie, as Mark held her close.

_you have no choice, little child of entropy_

_for all shall be reduced to naught_

_all shall be brought low_

_into absolute nothingness_

F̴̟̀̃̏͘ỏ̴͖̩͕̓͜r̴̞͗͝͝ ̴̢̪̠̺͒̈́̿͜o̸̪͍͈̣̔͋͒̎̂ư̷͖̝͆͌́͌r̶̢͎̤͔̼̃͆̀͂ ̸̩̞̀͒͛͆f̶̭̩̙͕̔͊̏ȯ̸̺͆̐̆r̴̠͉̤͎̳͆m̸̩͔͍͍̱̽̎̇ ̷̧̳̤̦̅̑ͅi̶̩͙̫͗͐́͝͝ś̷̡̫̳̙̖̿̉͝ ̴̶̙̙̳̪͉̆̋̚e̸͍͍̒͘m̸͉͎̺͋̔̀̿p̶̙̱͙͈̏̂̂̒̕t̴̠̏͐͊͝i̵̢̜̫̲̞̍͂̋͆̿n̷̢̄͐̈́̾e̸͙̥̓̈́̾̏s̴̟̩͈̘͆̇̈s̷̭͕̦̙̹͒̃

Ȩ̶̖̲̘͕̈́̋m̴̖̜͈͐̾p̷̡̛̜̑̆̆t̴͖̫̥̙̎i̸̧͔̲̐͋͒͝n̷̞̅e̴̲̓s̸̡̝͕͎̦̒̐͂̈́ṡ̸͕́͝ ̷͖̝͂̿̎̍͂ī̶̱͕͖͔s̶̻̻̈ ̷͔̔̓̄͠o̵̢̞͓̽̍̈́̕ư̵̝͇̞͓̂r̴̹̆̅̍͝ ̶̘̋̒̎͝f̴̱̓̈́͑͑o̸̧̮̊̉ṟ̴̼̪̇̉̇m̶̞͖͐̓͐͘

W̴̨̛̜̟͎̲͋̊e̷͇̯̺̭͊̕ ̶͎̉́̅͐͑h̶̥̠̩̓o̴̠̮͚̎̈́̀͝͠l̵̫̣̄͛͋͑͘d̶͎̥̻͕͈͒̀͒͒ ̷̯͊n̴̲͓̈̋̐̑̒o̷̧̗̬̹̠̓ ̶͈̈͊̉̅b̶͍̬̤̖̭̆ĭ̵̗̯̈́̓̽ͅr̶͖̼͇̣̿̃̄͑̈́ͅt̵̢̗͖̯͊͂h̷̀͑͛ͅ,̸͓͉̬͗̏̆͊̈́ͅ ̷̖̜͒̇͆n̸̟͇̉̋o̸͙͛̉̚͝ ̸̪̆d̴̹̓̿͛͘e̵̛̥͇̹͛̅̓͐ä̷̹́̄t̸̨̘͎̬͐͜h̸̼̔̄

Ȩ̸̘̓̌͌̓͋͜ͅx̷̱͈̱̔̄͆̽ͅĭ̸̢̫̝̠s̸̨͔̟̯̍͋̂̌̕t̸͗̿ͅe̶̹͖̲̲̒̓̐͘ņ̷͙͉͌̾̆̆c̷̳͉̝̃̄ͅe̷̼̞͑̍̓͊̚ ̵̳̙̜̾͂̈́̆n̵̹͒̎̉̈͠ë̷̡̢͎́͋́̄̽v̵̧̯͛̀̍ͅě̸̱r̴̭̗̂̋̑̒̚ ̷̧̰̬̙͎̓͒̈́͘e̵̡̡͕̍̄̍̾x̴̢̘̩̻̿̏̓͝ͅi̷̞͉̱̰͒̂̔s̵̛͈̙̝̩̈̂̏̈t̶͙͚̗͈̮̃͌̒̔̊e̵̳̼̤̱̐̿̊͘ḏ̴̬̮̖͂ ̷̻̫̓̂̈á̵̙͍̖̗̀͑͑͜͝t̵̅͋ͅ ̴̛̙́͋ă̶̡͉͇̞̬͠l̴͈͈̈l̵̞̂͊

Ĺ̶͜i̷̡̍͐v̵̥̄̐̕i̵̞̻̒̿̐n̷͔͂ǧ̵̛̜̂ͅ ̸͖͔̀̚ị̸̢̣̌̆͝s̴͚͋ ̷͉̓͌̊b̸͚̘̗͛̽ų̷̭̇t̴̲̖̻͓̓͝ ̸̖͑̀̈́a̴̟͇͂͋ͅ ̸͉̫̀̈ś̴̠̌́h̴̞̳́̃a̸̗̥͆m̴̛̟͗ȩ̵̺̳̲̍͒̓f̷̖̹̰͎̈̕͘u̸̬̻̼̞͌͒͘͠l̶̰̤̎ṉ̷̭͒͂͛͗ͅe̸̻̩̼͛s̵̱̅͒̌s̴̼͍̃͝ ̷̖̳̦̰͒͒̇̒ỏ̶̡̱̲̣͛f̷̧̤̖̋ ̷̛̮͒̍ị̶͙̳̖͆͂t̵̢̛͔̮͠ͅs̴̮̜̯͊͠ ̶͇͗͛̓r̵̫͌̈́e̷̘̾̕f̴͈̞̰̐̎l̵̨̯̝͉̓̄͊e̶̡̦̗̝͐̕c̶͕̦̒̍̒̚ţ̷̭̠̓̒ͅi̸̛̳͌ő̷͙͈̞͎̋̎͠n̷̜͂

Ơ̴̤̗̻̇̏͘̚ͅn̶͍̪̮̟̈̚e̴̡͇̯̍̋ ̵̧̧̱̅͝c̷̬̊à̸͍͑̽n̴̖̞̯͈̞̏n̶͎̠̉̊͝o̶͊̋̇͝ͅt̸̟͎̫̖́̀͝ ̸͖̈́̔d̴͍͚͔͍͐̄̕ĕ̶̘̞̙͊f̸̘̭̣̈́̐͒i̵͉̮̭͛̎̏l̶̡̨͚̺̅̃è̴̯̜̻̣̹̍͘ ̸̫̭̖͗̍̅͜͜ẅ̴̪͍̗̖͓̋͆̊͋ḫ̵̺̤͓̑â̵̖̹̭̟̰̌͛͠t̶̛̞͇̘͚̑͝ ̷̦̫̝̬̯̐̽̄̕͘ḧ̶͖͜a̵̢̮̎͛͂s̸̗̺̜̄͌͘ ̵̰̈́̅̾̈͝n̶̜̋̎͋͝ě̵̡̙̹͠v̶̢̢͙̹͓̆͊̚e̷̻̝̽͑r̸͔̖̳͂̕ ̷̗̙͎̂͊͗b̵̗̳͔̺̈́͗̾e̸̠̙̦̅̌e̷̢̾n̵̜̥͎̜͐͛͋ ̴͙͇̈̏̃p̵̹̫̀͂u̷̞̗͚̜̓̓r̶̨͕̈́̓̈͠e̶͎̩̻̜̞͆͠ _  
_

Ǫ̶̘̖͖̖̐n̷͍̺̹͎̝̈́e̵̱̹̚ ̷̪̹͔͋̑̇̔ͅc̷̪̮̻̣̏a̶̢̬͎̐n̷͔̊͜n̶̨̪̰̬̆͐ŏ̸͚̽t̵̡̼̲̓ ̷̛̠̜̉͛̂̅t̶͓̫̮͙̏ã̴̼̩̖̝̖͊̔̋̚k̷̛̫͂̚͝ë̶͎̊͊̕̚ ̸͇͚̰͊̾̋͘ä̷̛̻̮̰̠͍̎̅̕w̴̢̜̫̬͎a̷̻̯̤͉̔y̶̮̱̱̋͋ ̶̢͈̎w̴̨̦̪͍̥̋̀h̷̟̻̼̮͠ḁ̷͎̫̣̖̓̋t̴̠͈̼̙̤͊̑̍͋ ̵̝̖̫͐̐̇͛͠h̸̻̜͆a̵̡͕̰̯̍̚s̵͚͙͔̣͓͋̂͘ ̴̜͍̮̤͒n̶̢̤̺̭͜͠e̵͔̙̭͓͗̇̿v̵̳̠̑̓̌̎͘e̶̡͚̟̳̟͛̅͐ŗ̶̫͌ ̸̡̬̝̄̓̃b̵̢̡̛̭̝͍̑e̸̞̿̄ě̴̦̱͕͚̊̋͝ͅṋ̵͓̈͒͜͝ͅ s̶͕̠̥̤̎͐̄ṭ̴̜͝ȯ̵̦͓͎̍l̶̦̓̓͜ę̴̦͙̬̔͐n̸̹͖̹̄̂̀͝

T̶̢̨̮̼̈́r̶̢̬͖̭̘̍̀̔̚u̷̱͑͗e̶̡̯̭̲̫͛̉̃̆͝ ̷̳̝̜͐͒̃̔w̶͔̮̼̏i̶̛̥̤͖̾̈́s̴̹̗̙̻̼̆̌͗̃d̵̨̢̼͚̫͋͊̆͋̈́ô̸͎͐̆̌m̸̨̛̹̙̆ ̷̯͐́̅̋i̶̺̖̬̬̪̎́s̴̤̺̐͘͠ ̸̝͎̫̱̺́̔͛ī̸͍̖̠͖̖̓̚n̷̡̯͓̖͊͐̍͝ ̸̬̈̿̀͠t̴̢̟͎͙̅ͅh̵͔̦̫̪̽e̷͖̓͝ ̷͇̻̝̠̔̐̄̚͝ů̷̱̼̉̐͑̽n̵̡̛͑̈́͝͝d̴̜̰̺̈́̊̎̒ȇ̷̻͈͕̺̝̋͘r̵̡̧̹̋̈́̂͘͜͝s̸͍̰̑̚͝ẗ̶̥̬̼̰̫́͛͌̏̒á̸̬̍͑n̷̡̜̹̪̳̈́d̴̮̆̂̄͌̈ī̷̛͕̘͌̐̈́n̷͙̦̂ͅğ̵̡̯̺̤͝ ̸̛̬͕̼̈͊t̶̡͔̻̽͂̃͂͝ḧ̵̙͚̋̿͘ā̵̢̧̺̬̇̒̓t̶̢͚̲͎̏ ̴̟̈́â̸͎͘l̶̛̜̞̻̹̈́̐̈́̌l̸̗̘͓̥̀͑̌̕͜ ̶̻̄w̸̻͇̾̐i̶̤̯̺̹̽̕l̷̩̯̇̿̽̔l̴̢͕͖͌͑ ̷̪͕͖̖̈́ͅṛ̸͊ę̷͗̅̐̕ṭ̴̻̖̜̯̓̆̀͆̕u̵̧͇̲̅r̴̻̯̬͖̔̉̕n̷̝̠̭͆̊̕ ̷̼̎̚t̴̹̳̒͋ŏ̴ͅ ̶͔́́̔͆͝n̷͚͎̆͛̊̚o̴͕͝t̶̬̻͈͚͕͒h̷̤͍̭̼̠̽ḯ̷͎̦̮̆͝ͅṋ̸̜̉̓̚g̶̯̘̍

T̷̏͜h̶͍̅͌ͅą̴̢͍̍ͅt̴̳̺̑ ̵̼̜͉̈́̓å̶̢l̶̟͊͌̔̓l̸̨̜̫̼̆̈̇̆ ̵̡̬̥͂͝w̴̨̛̳̭̌i̷̧͎̫̽̿l̶͇͖̝͒̅ͅl̷͈͝ ̴̨͗͂̓̂͜r̷͍̤͇͌̂e̶͇͒͛͝t̵̗͎͈̐̄̍͘u̸̲̖͍͂́̾ͅr̶̩̅̊̚͠n̶̦͕͛̓͒ ̶̪͝t̴̫͂̐̋͝ő̴̩͖͓̜͑̃ ̷̺̓͌G̸̢͓̤͐͒ḧ̴̬́̊̚i̸̩̽d̸̞̞̈́o̶̡͕͈̽̿̉̋r̷̨͇̈́͂ā̶̜͇̎̿͝ḧ̴̢̹̱́̔͊!̷̫͓̖̒̈̿̾

"Oh my G-," began Rick.

"I _refuse_ you, Ghidorah," Mark said, echoing his daughter, his mind racing so fast it seemed quiet, all as his heart seethed. He could have sworn he saw their eyes flashing, fixating on him, when he gave his answer.

Everyone on board thought they heard an amused chuckle rumbling from those three golden necks.

"Dive! Dive!" shouted Col. Foster in a panic, as the pilots immediately obliged, adrenaline and instinct overriding rational thought after the realization of truest horror that was Ghidorah's illuminant, golden shadow.

On the display, Ghidorah flew unabated towards Rodan. As gold lightning collided with red fire, two heads met two wings once more, but held their grip much more fiercely than before, all while their own massive wings conjured a massive windstream that domineered over Rodan's own aerial mastery and prodigal usage of air currents; an unfortunate situation Rodan found himself in a few moments too late to resolve when he realized he could not twist the massive Titan opposite him into a more favorable position.

_we will not take kindly_

_to your shameless tricks once more_

The middle head launched a yellow bolt of energy right as the other two let go; within seconds, they too, joined in, and struck Rodan with their own yellow beams, their combined might forcing Rodan to fall ever more quickly towards the waters below. With a pitiful, mighty splash, Rodan found himself bested by Ghidorah.

A fact he made known with a strong tirade of Titan-sized curses.

_**FUCK YOU, YOU GOLD-PLATED ASSHOLE, YOU -**_

_A very...colorful tirade_ , Ilene noted to herself with a flinch, as Rodan strung together more words far too unsuitable for Monarch's records.

"Ghidorah is tailing us and gaining, fast!" shouted Rick, pulling up a rear camera.

_we are not done with you yet_

_you are done only when we say you are_

_embrace the end_

_embrace the abyss of Nothing_

"Shit!" Rick cursed, as the Argo rocked back and forth for a few seconds. "We just lost the hangar door!"

_the void comes_

_the void will not cease_

_the void hunts for all_

_nothing seeks for naught but everything_

Multiple tugs rocked the Argo as Ghidorah's left head took to toying with the exposed hangar.

_what fun their strange tools are_

_cease playing with food, brother_

_go for the gnashing of teeth_

_and the weeping_

_make them profess for us_

_give them hope, then_

_RIP IT AWAY-_

**Did you suddenly forget about me, Interloper?**

With a sudden rush, Godzilla emerged from below and slammed his entire weight into Ghidorah's side, blindsiding the golden hydra as he dragged them into the waters.

Everyone waited a beat, then let out a collective breath of relief.

"We're in the clear for now. Status report?" said Foster.

"Aside from a missing hangar door and a possibly missing Osprey, everything is stable," said Mark, before a video call with the ID of _Admiral Stenz_ appeared on-screen.

"To what honor do we have for you to grace us with your presence, _Admiral?_ " asked Rick.

"Is Dr. Serizawa not there with you?" Stenz replied.

"No, he's mourning a colleague. Do we need you to leave a message?" said Mark.

"My condolences. I simply wished to inform you all that the world governments have reached an accord. Monarch will fall under the United Nations' jurisdiction, effective immediately. Additionally, we will be deploying a prototype superweapon - one that has been in development ever since the first incident with the MUTOs in 2014. An...Oxygen Destroyer, if you will. A weapon designed to split oxygen molecules, and then liquefy them. Testing showed promise, with water being reduced to its composite gases. It should hopefully either disintegrate the Titans, or simply reduce them to mere bones."

"So you're saying you want to use this on the Titans, to render the air and water they need utterly useless, while killing them in the process, while drowning Monarch in the stench of bureaucracy," said Mark.

"Yes," Stenz replied, open-ended. "And you all have approximately one minute to clear out from the blast zone."

"Excuse me?" said Ilene. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"The United Nations has already approved usage of the experimental Oxygen Destroyer. It is now on its way to its destination, hopefully to rid us of two Titan-class threats in one go."

"You would sacrifice the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people along the coast over two Titans?! Godzilla is on our side, you- you asshole!" said Ilene.

Stenz did not acknowledge it, instead allowing silence to hang in the air. "I can only advise you to clear the area. You have thirty seconds remaining until detonation," said the Admiral.

"But Ghidorah won't be-," Maddie began, only to be interrupted by Admiral Stenz ending the call. "Fuck!" Mark gave Maddie a stern look.

"Damn it, he wasn't lying. We have a payload coming in hot from the northeast," said Rick, having pulled up a holographic projection. "We need to get out of here."

"Full speed to the west, now!" said Col. Foster.

"Payload impact 20 seconds and counting!"

**You always hated the water, Interloper.**

Godzilla sent Ghidorah into a crocodilian death roll, spinning over and over, disorienting his hated rival.

**Now I will tear you apart until you are nothing but carrion for scavengers!**

In the midst of the savagery, Godzilla's claws found purchase as they punched through the scales of one of the three necks. With the building momentum of his death roll, Godzilla bit into one neck, and shook back and forth with adrenaline-fueled abandon, the golden terror bleeding out a black, ichorous substance.

**How fitting, that underneath all that gold, what you truly are is a beast with blood as blackened as your heart!**

With a ferocious tug, Godzilla tore through golden scales, through foreign flesh and bone, and _ripped_ one of the three hated heads clean off; he held it above the surface for but a moment before releasing it, the lifeless eyes slowly drifting to the bottom of the waters.

**It seems I missed. Let me try again!**

A small, seemingly innocuous pod suddenly dropped into the water with a sudden _plop_ , giving Godzilla and Ghidorah pause.

The pod exploded in a venomous shade of green, and silence filled the bay.

\---

"Dear God...," said someone in the command room.

An entire bubble had been carved out of the sea, the surrounding water suspended by the force of the blast, the crater's edges flickering about with green, ethereal flames consuming the water's oxygen with reckless abandon. Then, as if the water suddenly remembered what it was supposed to be doing, attempted to fill in the newly formed crater, but to no avail, instead opting to just flow around it. The water level of the area was shown to be visibly lower all around, while the green bubble's boundaries remained clear for all to see as it flicked about like a fire underneath the water's surface.

Like a green glass bauble left to burn for eternity underneath the ocean's surface as a toxic reminder of human military hubris.

"How could they allow usage of a weapon that could do all this?" Ilene asked, directed to no one.

Dead fish floated to the surface in droves. Entire pods of dolphins, and several whales, as well as hundreds of sharks - metric tons worth of corpses floated to the surface in the wake of the half-mile wide bubble. Everyone waited on the edge of their seats to see if Godzilla or Ghidorah would emerge.

"I'm picking up something. It sounds like a pulse, but it's weak. Pull up the bioacoustics library for reference," said Dr. Stanton.

"It's Godzilla's pulse!" said Maddie, as Rick put on a set of headphones.

"Come on, big guy, you can do it."

_Ba-bump ba-bump_

_..._

_Ba-bump...ba-bump..._

_..._

_..._

_Ba-bump..._

_..._

Then silence, and Rick took the headphones off.

"Nothing."

Maddie looked at Dr. Stanton with the last of her hope held in her eyes. "Nothing?"

Rick could not meet her eyes, and turned towards the display. "I'm sorry, kid."

A terrifying shriek suddenly filled the air, as a damning pressure weighed heavily on everyone. Water burst upward, as a foreboding shade of gold shot out of the bay, flying towards the melted remnants of Outpost 56 atop the Isla de Mara volcano. Lava flowed freely as Ghidorah's storm cell moved in. Walls upon walls of clouds mixed with copious amounts of volcanic ash, as lightning struck lava flow.

To everyone's horror, everyone aboard the Argo watched as the left neck stump suddenly sprouted a transparent membrane, of which the middle head held on to for but a moment before tearing it away, revealing a jawbone at the end of shifting sinews. Golden scales grew and grew as the neck slowly regenerated, the jawbone splitting into three. Two prongs sprouted an eye and half a jaw each with all the ease of a disturbed houseplant. The bottom prong released a forked tongue, its length snaking every which way in a horrific snake charmer's dance. Three prongs soon became two; the upper jaws fused together, the eyes popped into proper orbit, the nostrils, teeth, and tongue aligned. Upper and lower jaws snapped together to test their regenerated strength.

Within several sanity-breaking seconds, Ghidorah had broken every natural law.

Their heads all faced upwards in heaven's rebellion as they roared an Alpha's call, their mighty wings splayed out in dominion over the hellscape that was now Isla de Mara.

W̵̛̖͎̔͜ė̶̪ ̷͉̒ä̸̛̤̗̩̍r̸̻͘ȩ̶̿ ̸̳̳͒͗͘ţ̴̜̾̓̑h̵̲̽̄͜ë̵̦̠́ ̶͉̮͌ô̵͚͎̅n̶͍̞̯̒e̴̹̓

_who is many_

_out of many_

_O̵͚͑n̵͚̔͋͜e̷̝͒_

_we will raze this pathetic world_

_leave nothing in our wake_

_not even ashes!_

_naught but the remnants of a void_

_just like your pitiful feelings_

_feeble perceptions_

_poor thoughts and useless conscience_

Á̶͈̮̒͝l̴̰̾̚l̸̨͎̳͘ ̷̳̐̌̕b̷̬̌̉̓e̷͚͇̼͐a̴͎̓͘r̵̥͍̗̿ ̵͎͔̈͐n̵̛̫ȯ̸͕̘̌̓t̴̠̐̽h̸̯̘̙͐i̵̻̒̌͝ň̸̦͉͝͝g̸̻̪͐

Ǎ̶̟͕͓l̶̟͚̏ͅl̸͈̱̄̏̏ ̷̡̻̪̓̄b̵̗̅͋e̸̤̤͊͜a̸͔̋̍͊r̵̤̀ ̷͙̒t̶̗̹͑̈́h̶͍͐é̵̼̤̱̀ ̴͉͎̓̏ṽ̶̗̲͎̇ỏ̴̩͓̩î̷̤̑d̷̯̈̊

E̸̺̫͂ņ̵̯̎l̶͔͍̊͝i̶̐̎̍ͅg̸̳͝h̶̞͗̌t̵̰̰̘͋e̶͕̜̅n̵̠̂͊̚ͅm̴̹̠̗͐e̵̜͓̐n̷̹͘ț̷̭͆ͅ ̶̘̘̔̌ì̶̜͓̥̎̋s̴͙̪̎͛͜ ̸̢̢̥̀t̵̤̾̉̕͜ḣ̴̥͊̿͜e̶̜̙̎͒̆ ̷̧̤̟̍͠r̸̝̗͑͝e̵̺̰͐̽ȁ̸̱l̵͎̪̳ḯ̶̪͘͝z̵̬̣̯̀̅͐a̸͕͝t̸͎̟̣̓̀ȋ̴̜͔o̸̹͕͝n̷̻̘͇̂ ̷͈͈͂̚͠t̶̩̚ḧ̶̹̝͍̊̅a̸̦̙̐́t̵͈̫̰́̚ ̸͔̎̑a̵̤̜͗̾l̸̥̲̂̍͝ͅl̵̻̗̝̓̊ ̷̜͠t̶̛͈͝h̸͓͍̑ḭ̷͇͓̈̏n̴̺͕̯̑g̷̛̻͍̑̋s̷͔̜̓ ̷̼̟̱͠a̸̢͍͖̋̒ŗ̶͋̎e̴̥͎̳̅͝ ̷̡̬̍̂ụ̵͗̕͘s̶͍̮̈́͒e̶̞̤̞̾̌͝l̴̗͐e̵̜̜̣̿͑ş̴̺̐ṡ̸̞

F̸̘͇̉̅o̸͓̙̓r̸̜͊̽̉ ̶̼̼́a̷̩̎l̴̺̮̃l̵̢̛͚̂ ̷̯͕́͛͝t̶͉̣̎h̴̲̲͛ǐ̶͔͗͘n̶͇͈͌͜g̴̢̯̽͗͗s̵͂͜ ̶̠̮́̿s̸̯͐̽͠h̵͕̹̽ȁ̶̛͔̕l̵̯̭̄l̸͓̽͛͜͜ ̴̮́͒̐r̸̮̙̗͗̏͝ě̵̺̆t̶̥̱͈̿̐͠u̵͎̼̰̿r̸̯͎͈̀ņ̵͉̼̓̒̌ ̴̻͗͂ͅͅt̶̥͚͕͗ȏ̸̖̒̒ ̴͔̇n̸̡̍ō̶͖̻t̸̡͖̻͑̌͆h̸̨̤̔̃i̴̖̤̚͝n̴͙͠ǵ̸̜̫͙͛

Á̵̲̕ń̵̰͓͑d̵̨̤͗ ̴̡̔̽̉ẃ̵̛̪̣͛ė̵͕̘͆̃ͅ ̶̨̼̻̌́͐a̴̡̯̍̽̇r̷̬͎͋̐͝ȩ̷̠̞̍̒̌ ̸̜̓̕i̷̖͝t̴͇̘̹̎̄s̷͖̤̠̒́ ̶͎̝͒̈́͝h̴̩̅ă̴̗̱̯͘r̸̕͘͜͝b̷̞̐͆ȉ̵̼̭̇n̴̼͠g̵͕̹̹̈́̆e̵̛͚̚r̶̪̳̣͂

W̶̨̡̯̽̈́e̸̲̕ ̴͙͑̊ą̶̜́̃͜r̵̹͂ȩ̵͍̾̄ ̶̛̬͑̓Ģ̴̎̈̿ḩ̴̋͒̈́ị̶̛͙̽͛d̶̝̍͝ơ̸̧̻̈́̑r̴̼͆͂a̸̫̘̋͋ḧ̷̝̭̣́

W̵̦͆̍e̴̪̤̽͊̓ ̷̯̩͘͜͝s̶̢̡̖̓̒ẖ̴͔̙̇̔̄a̸͚͉̫̋̆l̶͔͒͌̂l̶͚̗̬̈́̐̽ ̷̜̮͑̚r̶͖͒͘ẻ̷̻m̸̨͝ạ̴̢͊̆i̴̟̤̰̾͌͘n̶͇̯̘͛̈́ ̷͖͂G̴͝ͅḫ̸̍͜i̷͙͒ͅd̸̲͓̪̋o̴̻͇̠͊͠r̸͉̞͂͆͗a̶̬̐̐̀h̴̞͉͈̆̕

E̴͚̽̉͠v̵̢̗̋͛͋ḙ̶͖̅̇͠n̸͎̰̣̔ ̷̰͈͍͌̔̏w̷̧̢̐̈́̌h̷̩̀ę̴͚̥̈̊̒ñ̸͕ ̷͍̰̦̔N̵̛̰o̵̦̔͂̕ͅt̷̢͇̮͒h̴̹̞̪͑͛i̶͈̒n̷̩̓͝g̸̣̈́͂ ̶̖͗͐͊i̴͈͎̓ͅt̷̼̓š̶̭̈́̈ẽ̷̹̈́͝l̷̺̾͝f̸͕̰͆ ̷̩̄̌̑e̶̯͆x̸̯̄͐̕p̵̦̊͗ę̶͈̿͠r̶̳̿̋̚i̷̢̬͛͂̚e̸͖̬͒n̸̢͖͊͊͜͠c̷̜̭̼̐ȩ̶s̶̡͉̏ ̷̤̤̪͆͑e̶̙͑̑n̸͓̯͛͒l̸̘̬̞̽i̷̜͔͔ğ̶̭̌͂h̷͕͇t̸̬̙͖̒e̸̟̼̕n̴̨͙̜̓̒̑m̴̺̪ẹ̸̛̣̍n̵͇̻̑͗͗ţ̷͈͘ ̸̦͝͝i̵̢͝ṇ̴̛̘̣ ̵̧̪̖̈̆͝e̵͇̩̔̕n̴̨̯̾t̷͙͉̦̄̂̾r̶͉̈́͝ǫ̶̪̤̑p̸̝͌͝ỹ̴̲͑

Ghidorah roared, in rebellion.

The Titans answered by awakening, aside from Rodan.

Ilene and the others could only watch as Rodan flew away and out of sight beyond the horizon -

_**FUCK YOU, YOU GOLDEN IMPOSTER.** _

Ilene sighed. It was going to be a long night, she thought to herself, as she briefly wondered how her sister was faring.

\---

**Outpost 67**

Dr. Mariko sat in the comfort of Methuselah's shadow, when she heard the far-off echoes of a discordant Alpha's call.

A searing pain soon tore through her head, almost like the sensation of a cauterizing blade.

The last thing she saw before blacking out was Methuselah's expression twisting into concern. She could have sworn she heard Behemoth crying out her name, oh so many, many miles away.

_Child!_

\---

**Outpost 55**

_I should have taken a different route out of here!_ Dr. Nikolaou thought to herself as she ran through the halls after the outpost's emergency protocols went into effect. _Why did my brain take me here?!_

The ground shook unbelievably as the doctor found herself in front of a familiar door. The dirt around it cascaded down from ceiling to floor, as she walked up to the keypad.

A massive limb punctured through the door just a foot away from her head.

"Scylla! It's me! Please don't let me regret taking your route again!" she shouted.

_My little dear...I am so sorry..._

_\---_

It was a rather blissful evening, Cora Stewart mused, as she overlooked the coast. After her transfer from Outpost 49, she found herself unable to acclimate to her new post, and opted for a severance package and an early retirement after she threatened litigation for her state after her encounter with Titanus Leviathan.

"The waves are coming in quite heavy tonight, though," she said to herself, as the coast began to be battered by wave after wave.

She looked closer, noting how the waves were starting to come in with a peculiar urgency. "What the...?"

Soon the waves gave way to shapes, and before long, and much to her horror, an indefinitely long serpentine frame appeared in front of her, the Titan's indescribably massive head looking down onto her tiny, insignificant frame. Those deathly familiar eyes of luminescent purple bore into her eyes and stared upon her soul. The Titan held an expression that painted nothing but grief and sorrow, nothing but pain and regret.

**Barn, I have shed the confines of my cage.**

Cora could only stumble backwards, her head shaking in disbelief. "No, no, no...," she mumbled to herself, over and over, tears forming at the edges of her eyes.

**I am sorry, but the end has now begun.**

**\---**

**USS Argo**

Within his quarters, Dr. Serizawa wept for the loss of the one colleague he had held the most camaraderie with, the one who had looked at him with such fondness, like a daughter who loved their father.

He heard the alarms, the sirens. He heard every bit of commotion within the halls.

_He could hear the devils three taunt him in his shadow, in **her** voice._

"O̷̢͖̗̙̩͛t̵̀̑͋̍ͅŏ̵͈̣̣͖̤ṵ̶̆̉͆-̷͙̣̘̳̈́͒̋͝͝ͅṩ̸̹̉͒a̴͉͇̱͂͑̎͒̆n̶̲̊͑ͅ," whispered the golden three in a cruel mockery of Vivienne's own voice, somehow managing a perfect Japanese inflection marred only by the subtle tones of an eldritch incomprehensibility.

He was prepared for the grief to consume him. Until -

_Ba-bump..._

_..._

_Ba-bump..._

Until he _felt_ hope for a better future, until he felt himself grounded within a far-off heartbeat.

And he looked down at his hands, tracing the lines of age and experience for a moment.

And it hit him.

Dr. Serizawa had a duty at Monarch. Far be it from him to let grief stop him from his passion.

Dr. Graham - _Vivienne_ would not want her death to hinder the man she respected most.

And Serizawa Ishirō would be _damned_ if he didn't give his all for the one he had cared for as his own daughter.

Serizawa slowly clenched a hand into a fist, his resolve steeled.

_For Vivienne._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After this, I have two more chapters to feature one familiar Titan each, before culminating with a fight of...Titanic proportions. Once this KotM arc concludes, I'll denote which chapters comprise it, and then continue with our regularly scheduled program of one-on-one interactions between human and Titan.  
> If you have a Titan in particular that you'd like for me to write about after this arc is done, feel free to suggest it.
> 
> Brief Edit: Zalgo text generators apparently do not mesh well with foreign languages. Edited with romaji.
> 
> I cannot thank you all enough for your continued support.


End file.
